


Lay With Me

by swansea23



Category: Football RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-04
Updated: 2018-12-17
Packaged: 2019-06-05 07:40:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 26,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15165860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swansea23/pseuds/swansea23
Summary: Eric has a nightmare, Dele helps him calm down





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is all made up in my imagination. Apologies to Eric and Dele, I don't mean any harm. I'm just lonely, bored, and a little bit messed up.

He never had nightmares. At least not until that night. The team hadn’t gotten to bed until late, it was nearing three in the morning by the time the post match buzz began to die down and one by one the players headed up to their respective rooms. Eric had fallen into a deep sleep before his head even hit the pillow. Unfortunately, he was now trapped in the midst of a horrifying dream. It was his turn up at the penalty spot, staring down the Columbian keeper. He had made this shot thousands of times in practice, he was ready for this moment. The ball flew from his foot, and… right over the post, troubling the keeper not one bit. The next thing he knew, his teammates were lying on the grass, tears streaming down cheeks, consoling hugs being doled out half heartedly. They’d lost. It was over. It was his fault. It wasn’t coming home…  
“Dier, Dier, wake up, come on now, wake up…” His eyes shot open and he sat up with a jolt. His body was covered with a sheen of sweat and he was gasping desperately for air. As his eyes began to focus in the dark room, he saw Dele standing by his bedside his face filled with concern.  
“Dele, we won, please tell me we won.” He begged his roommate  
Dele gave a soft chuckle that immediately calmed his raging nerves.  
“We won Eric, we won.” He smiled down at Eric, that famous Dele smile that made Eric’s insides feel all soft and warm.  
“Thank God. I had this terrible dream…”  
“I know, I heard Dier. But it’s okay, you’re okay now, I promise.” His voice was calm and soothing, and put Eric at ease instantly, in the way only Dele could.  
“Can you, maybe… um… can you lay with me for a while?” Eric asked hopefully  
“Of course, scooch over fatty.” He giggled, giving Eric’s side a poke. Eric was too tired to think of a witty retort, so he just obliged, and made room for Dele in the narrow bed. It was a tight squeeze, and Dele ended up basically on top of him, arms wrapped comfortingly around Eric’s body. Eric gave a contented sigh and pressed a gentle kiss into Dele’s hair.  
“Night Dier.” Dele mumbled sleepily  
“Night Delboy” Eric whispered before falling into a thankfully dreamless sleep.


	2. The Morning After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eric and Dele wake up together

Eric woke up feeling incredibly rested, despite the nightmare he’d had earlier. He wondered at how refreshed he felt, then realized it may have something to do with the warm weight pressed against his body that could only be… Dele. He remembered asking Dele to lay with him after his earlier nightmare, and his friend had happily obliged. 

They had always hovered precariously over the line between friends and something more, and this was not the first time they’d ended up in bed together. He would often crash at Dele’s home or Dele would crash at his, and they just seemed to naturally end up curled together on the couch or in each others beds. This time felt different though, and he wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was being at the World Cup, emotions were running high and there was so much swirling around in his mind that it was hard to concentrate on just one thing. But this morning, his mind was clear, he was able to think. The problem was, the only thought in his mind was Dele. The way he smiled, the way he laughed, his passion and intensity on the pitch, and his boyish charm off of it. Even the way he is constantly poking fun at Eric is something he knows he could not live without.   
All of these thoughts were running through his head, and going straight down below his waist. He felt himself growing hard, and having Dele pressed up against every inch of his body was not helping matters. He tried to remove himself from Dele’s death grip, but it was no use. He only succeeded in causing Dele to stir.   
“Where are you going?” He mumbled  
“I, um, I was going to go shower.” Eric replied nervously  
“Stay, you’re so comfy Dier.”  
Eric relented, because he always did when it came to Dele. 

Thats when Eric realized Dele was having the same problem as him in his lower body. He could feel Dele’s hardness pressed up against his thigh. A strange mixture of panic and excitement coursed through his body in matter of seconds.   
“Dele, you’re… um...hard” Eric pointed out the obvious.  
“So are you Dier. Don’t think I didn’t notice.” Dele stated. There was a long silence that stretched on for a few minutes, until it was finally broken by Eric’s shaky moan as he felt Dele’s lips press against his neck. They didn’t talk anymore. But the room was nowhere near silent. The sounds of panting and moaning filled the small space, as Eric, spurred on by Dele’s intoxicatingly soft lips, pulled the younger man fully on top of him, and the two began grinding against each other furiously. Their breathing became ragged as they neared their climax in a matter of minutes. Dele came first, his cries muffled against Eric’s neck, who soon followed his friend. They lay there panting, their boxers stuck to their bodies with drying cum, but neither of them moved or spoke. That was until there came a loud knock on their door that caused Eric to jump up and essentially throw Dele off the bed.  
“Hey!” Dele yelped from the floor as Eric shot him an apologetic look.  
“You guys okay?” the voice of Danny Rose called out to them from behind the door.  
“Everything’s fine!” They called in unison.  
“Um..okay, I just wanted to let you know we’re supposed to be downstairs for team breakfast in 10 minutes.”  
“We will meet you down there Danny!” Dele called as he took Eric’s extended hand and pulled himself upright.   
They heard Danny walk away, and they both breathed a sigh of relief.  
“Sorry about that.” Eric said, looking down at his feet shyly. Dele couldn’t tell if he was apologizing for their morning grinding session, or for flinging him off the bed. He hoped it was the latter, because he would be horrified if Eric felt he owed him an apology for the former.   
“It’s all good.” Dele assured him with a smile. “Now lets get changed and go down for breakfast, I’m starving!”  
“You’re always starving Del.” Eric pointed out as he rummaged through his suitcase for his official England attire.   
“Hey, I’m a growing boy Dier!” Dele replied with a grin. And just like that things felt like they were almost normal again. Or whatever their own version of normal was, and Eric was extremely grateful for that.


	3. Changes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eric thinks about him and Dele

There was no time to talk with Dele in the following days. Training was intense and took up most of their time. At night they were way too tired to have any real conversations. Eric had feared things would be awkward or tense between them, but was surprised at how easy it was to be around Dele and joke with him like they’d always done. Nothing had seemed to change, but for some reason that was unsettling to Eric.  
As he sat on his bed watching Dele play fortnite in the small window of time they had to rest before dinner, he was struck with a thought he’d never allowed himself to even entertain. The thought that maybe they could be more. That Dele could be his, and he could be Dele’s. That they could take the leap once and for all from friends to…  
“What are you thinking about over there Dier, you’re unusually quiet.” Dele’s voice snapped him back to the present.   
“Thinking about how badly you suck at that game.”  
“Liar, I’m the champ. What were you really thinking about?”  
“I can’t say, I’m still thinking it through.” Eric answered honestly. Because one thing he knew for sure, is that the World Cup was not the time or place to have a heart to heart conversation about what was really going on between them.   
“Weirdo” Dele giggled before turning his attention back to his game. Eric sighed and cursed himself for falling for that handsome childish lovable idiot.


	4. Us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dele and Eric celebrate

Eric felt his heart swell with pride as the ball hit the back of the net. Pride for his country and pride for his Dele. He watched his best friend celebrate his magnificent header, watched all the boys crowd around him for congratulatory hugs and handshakes. He ached to be out on the field to do the same. At one point Dele glanced over to the sidelines and their eyes locked, both their faces bursting into identical grins.  
When the final whistle blew, Eric was ecstatic. The semi finals of the World Cup were where his team was headed. In the chaos and confusion he was able to find Dele, congratulate him with a warm hug. He also could not resist a cheeky slap on the ass when Dele walked by him.   
They celebrated with the crowd, the fans that had put so much faith into them, who poured their hearts and souls into the team just as the players had done themselves. He would never get over this feeling as long as he lived. No matter what was to come, he knew he would always remember how it felt to be a part of this team, to be at the world cup with his friends, with his Dele. The celebrations continued in the locker room, as the players took pictures with each other and danced around in a way that any other day would look crazy, but under the circumstances seemed fitting. He watched Dele chatting and laughing with Kyle Walker and Jesse Lingard and soon their eyes met. Dele cast him a look that made Eric’s insides flutter with nervous excitement. It was a look of pure seduction. It was a promise of something Eric had only let himself dream about. He felt himself blushing wildly, which he could get away with, still being a bit flushed from the game and the celebrations. Dele grinned his usual grin, then returned to his teammates.   
Eric celebrated with his friends until late in the night, everybody riding a tremendous high from the victory. They gathered in one of the common rooms, where there was food and drink, laughing and talking, and some hilarious games of cards going on. Eric thoroughly enjoyed himself, however his non verbal exchange with Dele stayed in the back of his mind. So, when he saw Dele sneaking off to the elevator, he instinctively followed. Dele barely glanced at him as they stood side by side waiting for the elevator to arrive.   
They didn’t talk as they rode their way up to their shared room. As they walked down the quiet, empty hallways, their footsteps muffled on the carpet, Eric summoned his courage and reached out to touch Dele’s hand. He breathed a sigh of relief as Dele did not pull away, and instead intertwined their fingers and gave Eric’s hand a reassuring squeeze. They entered their room and Eric sat Dele down on one of the beds while he sat down on the other.   
“I, I um...just have some things to say to you.” He explained, and Dele nodded, and gave him a shy smile. That smile encouraged Eric, and he felt all the unsaid words spilling out of him.  
“You did so amazing today Delboy. I’m so incredibly proud of you, you know that right? I mean, I’m always proud of you, but today especially. You earned that goal, you’re such a hard worker, and I know that people are hard on you all the time, but you just keep doing what you’re doing and you keep proving them all wrong, because I know what you’re really like, and you Dele Alli, are absolutely bloody brilliant.” He realized he was rambling, but he just felt like he had to finally let the words out. Dele smiled in reply and crossed the space between them easily, straddling Eric’s lap in one swift motion, and throwing his arms around his neck.   
“I think you are absolutely bloody brilliant as well Eric Dier.” He whispered before leaning in and pressing their lips together.   
Eric felt everything all at once. A million different emotions coursing through his veins. Every voice in his head screaming that this moment right here, was perfection. That this was how it was supposed to be all along.   
Their kiss went on for a blissful few minutes, all the passion that had been building between them since the moment they first laid eyes on each others put into that kiss.  
When they pulled away for air, they stared into each other's eyes for a long time, Eric caressing Dele’s cheek tenderly.  
“God, you’re so beautiful.” Eric whispered, making Dele giggle and blush at the same time, a sight that warmed his heart.   
“You’re not so bad yourself, of course, that haircut makes your head look even more enormous than usual...” Dele broke into fits of laughter that continued on for some time until Eric kissed him again partly because he missed his lips and partly to shut him up. Dele was still grinning as they kissed, so Eric stuck his tongue into his mouth, causing him to groan. Their tongues danced together for some time, before Dele began grinding his hips downwards, making Eric gasp. Eric put his hands on Dele’s ass, and gave a quick squeeze. Dele moaned with pleasure and began grinding even harder.  
“What do you want Del? You did so good today, tell me what you want me to do.” Eric demanded.  
“I..oooh... I want you to suck me off. If...if you want to” Dele pleaded.  
“Oh god, of course I want to.” Eric gasped, bundling Dele up in his arms, and laying him down on the bed gently. He slowly stripped his friend of his clothing, first taking off his shirt, and taking a moment to adoringly run his hands over the exposed chest. He wanted to worship every inch of Dele’s body, wanted to make him feel better than he’d ever felt before, wanted to make Dele moan and scream his name. He wanted everything he’d convinced himself he would never had.   
He kissed his way down Dele’s chest, taking a few minutes to lick over his nipples and draw a desperate gasp from the man. Slowly he slipped off Dele’s pants and underwear, and released his gorgeous hardening dick. Eric could not help pressing a light kiss to the tip, drawing an aroused sound from Dele’s mouth. Eric swallowed Dele whole, taking him deep to the back of his throat in one fluid motion, wanting to have all of Dele, all at once. He bobbed his head up and down greedily sucking and licking. The sounds that Dele was making were pure perfection in Eric’s ear, and they only served to encourage him as he moved faster and took him deeper.  
“Oh God, Eric!” Dele screeched as he came in waves into Eric’s mouth. Eric swallowed it all, then licked him clean before drawing off completely. Dele was laying on the bed, his skin glistening with sweat, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath. Eric took a tremendous amount of pride in having rendered Dele speechless. After a few minutes Dele seemed to calm down, a look of tired satisfaction on his face.   
“That was...fucking amazing.” He said, before glancing down at Eric’s lower body. He sat up in bed and slipped his fingers up under Eric’s shirt, lifting it over his head eagerly. He kissed Eric’s nipples, giving each one a cheeky little bite. Eric gasped and felt his body flush with pleasure.  
“Now, what do you want Dier?” Dele asked, his voice low and seductive.   
Eric ended up on top of Dele, who was laying face down on the mattress, and grinding his clothed dick against Dele’s perfect butt. It only took a few minutes of frantic thrusting, until they both came. Dele for the second time, all over the bed sheets, and Eric for the first time, in his boxer shorts. They took a while to catch their breaths before wiping themselves off, pulling on new boxers, and settling into the other bed, the clean one that they hadn’t gotten off in. The pair settled down together, Dele sighing contentedly as Eric wrapped his arms around the younger man and pressed their bodies together tightly.   
“Do you think we should talk about this?” Eric whispered after a few minutes of comfortable silence. Dele took a only a few seconds before replying.   
“No, not yet. Let’s just enjoy for a while. We have enough to worry about right now. Let’s just focus on winning. Then, when we get home, we can talk about us. Does that sound okay?”  
“Okay Delboy, that sounds good.” Eric agreed, secretly loving the way the word “us” had sounded coming from Dele’s lips.   
They both fell asleep with smiling faces and happy hearts.


	5. We Will Be Okay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It broke my heart to see England lose. They did so well, and they should be so proud of everything they accomplished!

The whistle blew. It was over. This time, Eric knew it wasn’t just a bad dream. This was a nightmare he was going to be living in for a long time. He felt the tears beginning to form in his eyes, and he furiously blinked them away. Eric’s first instinct was to find his Dele. He searched among the sad, slumped over bodies of his teammates, until he found him. Dele was sitting in the grass, head in hands. It broke Eric’s heart more than any loss ever could. To see his best friend in such pain made his heart shatter in a million pieces. Eric quickly made his way over to Dele, and leaned over, extending his hand. It took a while, before Dele took it, rising to his feet in front of Eric. Their eyes met and Eric saw the pain and confusion in Dele’s beautiful brown eyes. He knew that pain, he felt that pain himself, and yet he knew he had to be strong for his team, for Dele.   
“You were brilliant Delboy, it just wasn’t our year.” Eric whispered in his ear as the two embraced on the field. Dele didn’t respond, he just buried his face against Eric’s neck for a moment, before leaving to comfort his other teammates.  
The rest of the night dragged on. First a dinner with the team and staff and speeches from the manager and Harry about how proud they all should be. It was true, they had a lot to be proud of; they had come so far, worked so hard, and inspired their country. They had a bright future ahead of them, as a team. It would just take time for their pain to lessen, and hope to grow again in its place.  
Eric kept glancing over at Dele worriedly, trying to catch is attention. Dele was in his own world though, his eyes cast downward, his face set in a hard frown. When they were finally back in their own room, Dele wordlessly undressed to his boxer shorts, shut out the lights, and curled up in his own bed.   
“Del? Do you want to talk? You know, you don’t have to be upset alone. We can be upset together, we can help each other through this.” Eric said, his voice gentle and coaxing. Dele didn’t respond, and at first Eric thought he was asleep, until he heard a quiet sob coming from the other side of the room. In a split second he was out of his bed, and over to Dele’s. He laid down, pulling Dele into his arms.   
“Its okay Delboy, its going to be okay. I promise, it won’t hurt forever, I know it feels that way now, but it’s going to get better. You can’t let this crush you.” There was a long pause before Dele spoke.  
“What if this is it Eric, what if this was our last chance?” He sobbed, turning over so he was laying face to face with Eric.   
“You can’t think like that Dele, you have to focus on better things. You’re still so young, and you’ve come so far, farther than most people can even dream. We’re all going to learn from this, and come back stronger. That’s all we can do.” Dele nodded weakly, but the words did not seem to do anything to stop his crying.  
So, Eric let him cry for a while, feeling like that might be the healthiest thing to do. He reached out and gently wiped Dele’s tears away as quickly as they fell, until there were no more left.   
Dele snuggled closer, pressing their bodies together so there wasn’t even an inch of space between them.   
“You’re going to be okay, I know it. Your Dele Alli, your brilliant, you always have been, and you always will be. No matter what happens.” Eric whispered into his ear.  
“Thank you, Eric. For everything. I don’t know what I did to deserve you.”  
“Aw, come on, don’t go soft on me now Delboy.” Eric teased, poking him in the ribs and drawing a giggle from Dele. And after everything that had happened that day, it felt like a win.


	6. Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dele and Eric spend time together after arriving back in England.

The plane ride home was fairly quiet. Most of the guys had their headphones in, while a few were playing cards. Dele was in the window seat beside Eric, staring out at the clouds. Eric had been listening to music for a while, but had lost interest about halfway through the flight.   
“What are you thinking about Del?” Eric asked, giving his friend a nudge to rouse him from his thoughts.  
“ A lot of different things.” He replied, leaning in closely to whisper in Eric’s ear, his breath tickling the skin. “Like how much I want you to fuck me when we get back home. How it would feel to have you on top of me, inside of me, pounding me into the bed.”  
Eric bit his lip to hold back the groan. He was surprised and excited by Dele’s boldness.   
“Holy Fuck, Delboy.” He whispered back. Dele sat back in his seat, popping his headphones back in with a mischievous grin.   
When the plane landed, all the guys gathered together to hug and say their goodbyes and take pictures. They had grown so close over the past month that they were more like a family than a team. Eric slung his arm around Dele’s shoulder as they made their way to their cars.  
“Coming over to my place Dier?” Dele asked, his voice low and seductive.  
“You bet your ass I am.” Eric replied, and the two shared a goofy grin.

As soon as the door closed, Dele backed Eric against the wall, and pressed their lips together in a passionate kiss. Eric gasped as Dele’s lips began to work their way down his neck, sucking and nibbling at the pale skin. Dele’s hands soon began to travel up underneath Eric’s England T-shirt.   
“Wait Del.” Eric said, breaking away from the younger man and running a hand over his short hair nervously. They stood in the hallway trying to catch their breath.   
“You don’t want to do this?” Dele asked, his voice slightly shaking.  
“What? No of course I want to do this! God Dele, I’ve wanted this for so long, you have no idea!” Eric exclaimed, and Dele smiled at his words.  
“I just, don’t know if we should do everything tonight. I mean, we are still upset about everything thats happened the past few weeks, and I want everything to be special. I want you to enjoy it, and not regret anything.” Eric stammered nervously.  
“First of all, you idiot, I would not regret it. I mean, how could I, its you! And second, we don’t have to do everything tonight, I just want to be with you Eric. I want to feel you, and hold you, and kiss you. Is that okay?”  
“Of course. That sounds perfect.”  
They went back to kissing, their tongues sliding together eagerly. They stumbled along the hallway, shedding clothing along the way, until they made it to Dele’s bedroom, undressed down to their boxers. They flopped down on the bed with Dele on top, grinding his hips down over Eric’s groin.   
“You are so damn hot Dele. You have no idea what you do to me. In the locker rooms, after practice, when you are all sweaty and shirtless….I could come just thinking about it.” Eric moaned.  
Dele gasped as Eric squeezed his butt cheeks excitedly.   
“You have no idea what YOU do to ME, Eric Dier. You are always doing something insanely sexy and it takes everything I have not to just jump on you in the middle of training.”   
Then, Eric flipped Dele over, so the younger man was now on the bottom, and quickly stripped them both of their last piece of clothing. He took a moment to admire Dele layed out underneath him, naked and looking absolutely gorgeous, his skin glistening with sweat. Eric took both of their dicks in his hand, and began jerking them off together. Dele groaned loudly, encouraging Eric to speed up his movements. They both jerked their hips desperately, panting into each others mouth, and every so often locking their lips together in a filthy and passionate kiss. Eric felt his orgasm building up in his body, the feel of Dele’s dick sliding against his own, combined with the sounds coming out of Dele’s mouth, driving him over the edge. Dele came soon after with a loud gasp, clinging onto Eric’s body for dear life as he road out his orgasm. 

They lay in bed afterwards, sweaty and satisfied and breathless.   
“Wow. That was...AMAZING Dier. Who knew you had it in you.” He laughed, causing Eric to elbow him in the side.   
“You weren’t half bad yourself Delboy.”   
Dele rolled over on top of Eric, straddling his hips, and pinning his arms above his head before Eric could do anything to stop him.   
“Admit it. I was the best. Admit it!” Dele commanded as Eric wriggled underneath him.  
“You were pretty good.” Eric replied teasingly, and Dele started to tickle him, making Eric break out into hysterical laughter.  
“The BEST Dier. Say it!” After a couple more seconds Eric couldn’t take it anymore.  
“Okay,I admit it! You were the best Dele. You blew my mind, I will never get over how amazing you were tonight!” He gasped, trying to catch his breath as Dele drew off, and layed back down beside him.  
“Seriously though Del, you were absolutely amazing. You really did blow my mind.”  
“Maybe later I can blow some other things.” He replied with a giggle.   
“Your crazy” Eric said affectionately, turning over to stroke Dele’s cheek. “And I’m just crazy about you.” He added, making Dele’s whole face light up in a smile. He leaned in and kissed Eric gently on the lips, before cuddling up next to him under the covers. 

Eric didn’t remember falling asleep, but the next time he opened his eyes, the sky outside had faded into dusk. He felt more rested than he had in weeks. Next to him Dele was sprawled out on the bed, his face smooshed into the pillows, a small puddle of drool had formed below his mouth. It was the most adorable thing he’d ever seen. Eric lay there for a while, just taking in the sight in front of him, storing the memory away in a special place in his heart and mind. He didn’t know how much time had passed before Dele began to stir.   
“Why are you staring at me?” He mumbled sleepily.  
“You’re just so beautiful.” Eric sighed blissfully, making Dele blush.   
“So are you.” Dele responded. He reached out and ran his fingertips over Eric’s face, gently tracing his features.  
“What do you want to do now? Are you hungry?” Eric asked, stretching his limbs with a yawn.   
“Always!”   
“How about I go make us some dinner, then come back here, and we can eat it in bed?” Eric suggested. “Then we could take a long shower together. How does that sound?”  
“Heavenly.” Dele replied.  
Eric spent a few minutes rooting around Dele’s kitchen, before realizing that they’d been gone for a month, so there was nothing edible in the place. He told Dele this, and the two decided to get something delivered. A half hour later, they were sitting in bed, propped up against the pillows, gorging on gooey cheesy slices of pizza.   
“This is nice, you and me just hanging out like usual.”  
“Yah, I was kinda afraid that maybe we’d be different after we…um…”  
“Fooled around?” Dele offered  
“Yah, after we fooled around.”  
“But, we’re still us. Just a more awesome version of us.”   
“I think you’re right about that Delboy.”  
“I know I am.” Dele replied, leaning in and kissing Eric softly on the lips. Eric sighed contentedly, feeling like the luckiest man on Earth in that very moment.


	7. Roller Coasters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dele and Dier on vacation

“This is incredible!” Dele exclaimed as he pulled back the curtains, and took in the view from their hotel suite. Eric set their bags down beside the king size bed, and came up behind Dele, snaking his hands around the younger man’s waist, and resting his head on his shoulder.  
“I’m so glad you like it.” He whispered. Dele had insisted that Eric pick their vacation spot, saying he wanted to be surprised, and judging by his initial reaction, Eric felt he’d made a good choice.   
The hotel he chose was a favorite among footballers and other famous people, due to its spectacular location, beach views, and above all, its privacy. The staff were discrete, and nobody had even bat an eye when they checked in together. Their suite was on one of the highest floors, overlooking the ocean.  
“What should we do first?” Eric asked, after a few minutes staring out at the water.  
“Make out on that massive bed over there?” Dele suggested, making Eric burst out with laughter.  
Eric sat on the edge of the bed, and Dele straddled his lap. Their lips locked in a way that had become familiar, yet no less exciting to them as their first time. Every touch, every kiss sent sparks through their bodies. Dele grinded his hips down over Eric’s groin and his lips attached themselves to the tender skin of his neck, sucking and licking, and drawing filthy moans from the other man. Eric’s hands wandered all over Dele, until they found their way to their favorite spot, Dele’s perfect ass, giving it a squeeze.   
“I want your fingers inside of me.” Dele gasped suddenly.  
“You’re going to kill me with talk like that.” Eric groaned in response. Dele giggled, and drew off quickly to rid himself of his jeans and shirt. Eric quickly did the same for himself.  
“Um..should we use lube or something?” Eric asked, wanting this to be as comfortable for Dele as possible. Dele rifled through his backpack and emerged with what they needed.  
“Came prepared, huh Delboy?” Eric teased  
“Please, like you didn’t” Dele shot back with a cheeky grin. Eric blushed, it was true, he had lube and condoms in his bag, packed right along with his clothes.   
They resumed their positions, this time with less clothing. Eric lubed up his fingers, and Dele grinded down over them, getting himself used to the feeling. When Dele was ready, Eric slipped the first one in, and Dele gasped loudly.  
“Is it okay?” He asked worriedly.  
“Yah...its weird, but in a good way.” Dele replied. Eric gradually added another one, which made Dele wince. Eric slid them out.  
“No! Keep going, please. I’m fine.” Dele insisted.  
It took some time and patience, but soon Eric had three fingers in his friend, and Dele was moving his hips downward to get them deeper.   
When Eric hit the spot inside Dele, his whole body jerked and the dirtiest sound he had ever heard came out of Dele’s mouth.  
“You feel so good inside of me Eric.” He whispered in his ear. Eric kissed him in response.  
He thrusted his fingers in and out of Dele for a while, enjoying the way the other man felt, and the sounds he was making. He began licking over Dele’s nipples, earning him a gasp of pleasure. Dele’s grip on Eric’s shoulders tightened as he drew close, and Eric began jerking them off together, grabbing both of their dicks in his big hand and twisting his wrist in just the right way to make Dele cum violently all over his hand and their chests. Eric followed a few seconds after, and as gently as he could, he pulled his fingers out. Dele slumped forward in exhaustion, and Eric held on to him tightly, rubbing his hands soothingly over Dele’s back. After a minute or two, Eric realized in horror that Dele was shaking, and he quickly asked the man what was wrong.  
“Nothing is wrong...that was just...the most amazing orgasm I have ever had in my life.” He confessed, his voice muffled against Eric’s shoulder. Eric sighed in relief, and held Dele even tighter.  
“I’m so glad it was good for you.”   
“Good? It was fucking unbelievable. And, well, it kind of scares me, to be honest.”  
“Why?” Eric asked, pulling away from their embrace to look in Dele’s eyes.   
“Well, I mean..um.. you’re a man. I never thought I would feel this way about another guy. And it feels… it feels terrifying. But also..in a way, it feels right. Does that make sense? It’s like, the feeling before you go on a roller coaster. You feel like you’re going to shit yourself you’re so scared, but also you are just so fucking excited too. You’re my best friend, and I feel like you and I, we just work. Dele and Dier, Dier and Dele, it’s just supposed to be that way. So it's terrifying, but fuck, it makes me feel better to know that it’s you. I trust you, and I know that we will handle this. I know that this is going to be a roller coaster ride, but a damn good one. Sorry, am I rambling?”   
“Don’t be sorry, I get it. I really do get it. And you are right Del, we will handle this. I know it's confusing and scary and exciting and about a million other emotions, but it's worth it, because it's us.”  
Dele nodded, and gave him one of his famous smiles, so Eric knew he was okay. They understood each other, that’s just the way it had been since they met, and he had a feeling that that’s the way it would always be.


	8. Always

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eric has another nightmare

Eric was enjoying the time off from football. Usually he’d be itching to get back to training, but after everything that had happened at the World Cup, he was grateful for the rest. He was even more grateful he got to spend this time with Dele. He just made everything so much brighter with his smile and his laughter filling Eric’s days with joy. They still had their constant banter, going at each other as if nothing had changed between them. It was as if their friendship was the same, just with an added bonus of physical affection between them. Everything was going as smoothly as could be.  
After a long day lounging by the pool, Eric and Dele had room service for dinner, then passed out on the bed while watching television. All in all, a perfect day. That’s why when Eric woke up in the middle of the night, soaked in sweat and gasping for breath, it took him completely by surprise. He had had another nightmare. This time it had nothing to do with football, and had everything to do with the man that lay beside him. His nightmare had been fairly straight forward, yet it left him feeling completely shaken.  
It had started off with the two of them in Eric’s flat. They were sitting on his couch when suddenly, Dele got up and leaned over, staring right into Eric’s eyes. The look on Deles face was cold and unfeeling. When he opened his mouth, he said to Eric:  
“I never want to see you again.”  
And with that he left the house, and Eric felt like his world was ending. The walls began to close in on him, and he was being crushed. Even in his dream he could not imagine a life without his best friend.   
He felt hot tears welling up in his eyes, and he quickly ran to the bathroom, so he would not wake up Dele. He sat on the edge of the bathtub, and held his head in his hands as sobs wracked his body.   
A few minutes later there was a knock on the door.  
“Eric, are you okay? I thought I heard you crying.” Dele called, his voice so full of concern.  
“I’m fine, just go back to sleep baby.” Eric called back, trying to steady his voice.   
“I’m coming in.” Dele entered the bathroom, and took in the sight in front of him. He looked over at Eric worriedly, then moved quickly to sit beside him. Dele wrapped his arms around Eric and held him tightly until his tears stopped.  
“Another nightmare?” Dele asked  
Eric nodded  
“What was it about?”  
“You...you left me. I was all alone.”  
“You know that would never happen” Dele replied, his voice gentle and soothing  
“You don’t know that, anything could happen Del. You might get sick of me, I might do something to piss you off, or I don’t know…you might start hating me. ” He felt the tears building up again, and blinked furiously to get rid of them.  
“Hey, Eric, look at me.” Dele put his hand under the other man’s chin, and tilted it upward until their eyes met. Eric’s eyes were red and puffy from the tears.  
“Eric, I promise you, nothing could ever make me hate you. And nothing could ever tear us apart. Okay? Just trust me on this.”  
“But you don’t know that for sure. You can’t know that.”  
“But I do. As stupid as it sounds, I just... have a feeling.”  
“That’s not stupid. That actually makes sense. I feel the same way actually. This dream just made me question the feeling.”  
“Dreams don’t mean anything, don’t let it mess with you. You know we’re good, and we always will be. Okay?”  
“Okay delboy. So, how did you get to be so wise?”  
“I was born this way for your information.” Dele retorted.   
They sat there in silence for a while, Eric wrapped up in Dele’s warm embrace.   
“Thank you for being here for me, Del” Eric whispered in his ear.  
“Always.” Dele whispered back.   
Soon they were back snuggled up together under the covers. They were laying together in the comfortable silence for a while, and then Dele spoke.  
“You know, earlier, you called me baby.” he said with a giggle.   
“Shut up...baby” Eric giggled in reply. Dele reached over and took Erics hand in his, and they fell into a restful sleep.


	9. Perfect

Eric sat on the beach in the late evening, staring out at the ocean. Dele was laying down with his head on Eric’s lap, and Eric began to run his fingers through his dark curls. A cool breeze came in off the ocean, and Dele gave a contented sigh.  
“This is perfect.”   
“Yes, you are.” Eric replied, leaning down and giving Dele a quick kiss on the tip of his nose, making the younger man giggle.   
They stayed like that for a while, watching the sun slowly set over the water. Eric’s hands traveled from Dele’s hair and began stroking his bare chest. His fingers grazed over his nipples, drawing a gasp from Dele.  
“Should we go back to the room now?” He suggested.  
“Yeah, I really think we should before I take your swim shorts off and blow you right here on the beach.” Eric replied, and the two scrambled to their feet and toward the hotel. 

When they finally made it to the privacy of their hotel room, they were all over each other in a second. They stumbled toward the bed, shedding their clothing along the way. Dele fell back onto the bed, and Eric straddled his hips, their dicks brushing together, making them both gasp. He leaned down and gave Dele a gentle kiss.  
Dele reached up and held Eric’s face in his hands.  
“I want you to fuck me Eric.” He said, his voice calm and confident.  
“Are you sure? Because I am completely okay with waiting. I don’t want to rush you, I know you’ve never done this before with...um...with a man, and um...neither have I actually.” Eric confessed. He had never trusted anyone enough to let himself be with anyone in that way. But with Dele, it was different. He trusted him completely, and he wanted him more than he had ever wanted anybody or anything in the world.  
“I really want this. I want to do this with you. I want you inside me Eric.” Dele assured him, then, looking suddenly unsure, he asked Eric:  
“Do you want to do this?”   
“Of course I do. God, Dele, you are so beautiful, I want you so badly.” Eric replied, his voice shaky with lust.  
“Prove it then.” Dele countered with a cheeky grin on his face.   
Eric quickly got up and grabbed the lube and condoms. He crawled back on the bed and folded Dele’s legs up, exposing his ass. Before he could second guess himself, Eric began licking at his hole. Dele gasped at the contact, and Eric pulled off abruptly.   
“Is that okay Del? Is it okay if I eat you out?”  
“Fuck, Dier, of course. Keep going that felt amazing!” Dele moaned, and Eric began again, licking his way into Dele, working him open with his tongue. The sounds coming out of Dele’s mouth, the shuddery breaths, the long drawn out moans, were encouraging to Eric, and he kept going until he judged Dele to be open enough. Just to be sure, he inserted two fingers and spread them. Once Dele began thrusting back on the fingers, he knew he was ready. He positioned himself above Dele, and their eyes locked. Dele gave a quick nod, and Eric began to push inside as gently and as slowly as he could. It took some time for Dele to adjust, and Eric was extremely patient and attentive to all of Dele’s needs. He wanted this to be perfect for the both of them. Once Dele was properly adjusted, he begged Eric to start moving. Eric was grateful for this, and began thrusting a little tentatively at first, then harder as Dele spoke words of encouragement into his ear.   
Being inside Dele was by far the most amazing sensation he had ever experienced. The warmth and the tightness were beyond belief, and the sounds that he was drawing from Dele were like music to his ears. When Eric hit the special spot, Dele’s whole body spasmed, and he shouted with pleasure.  
“Shit, Eric, this is so good. Don’t stop!” He moaned   
“I’m not gonna, you feel amazing Del.” Eric groaned in reply, thrusting his hips faster as they both neared their orgasms. Eric began jerking Dele off, and kissing him wildly at the same time. Dele came violently, his moans so loud they must have traveled across the entire hotel floor. Eric stilled for a while, until Dele came back down to Earth. Then he said the words that Eric would remember as the most arousing he had ever heard.   
“I want you to come on my face.”  
Eric groaned loudly before pulling out as gently as he could and tossing the condom aside.He kneeled over Dele, and began jerking himself off. It only took a few quick flicks of the wrist and he was coming all over Dele’s face. Dele had his mouth open and ready for it, and he swallowed as much as he could.   
When they were done, Eric got a wet cloth from the bathroom, and cleaned Dele up from head to toe, making sure to be gentle as he knew the other man was overly sensitive at that moment.   
“How do you feel Delboy?” Eric asked  
“To be honest, a little sore, but it was well worth it. I have never felt anything so incredible in my life!”  
“Me neither!”   
“You were amazing Eric.”   
“So were you.”  
“I want to go again!” Dele giggled, like he was a child who had just come off an amusement park ride.  
“So do I, but you should rest for a little bit first. I don’t want to hurt you.”  
“You could never. But, I guess I could do with a nap first.”  
“Sounds good. Then when we wake up, maybe you can ride me?”  
“You bet your ass I will.” Dele replied with a cheeky grin. 

They took a quick shower, then snuggled together under the covers, limbs intertwined. Eric could still taste Dele in his mouth from when he had eaten him out, and he absolutely loved it. He loved everything about being with Dele. How he tasted, how he felt, how he sounded. His looks, his personality, his kind heart, his determination. He loved Dele.  
As soon as that thought popped into his head, he froze. His whole body tensed up and he could feel his mind beginning to spin out of control. Luckily, Dele was sound asleep beside him and did not notice. He tried to stay as calm as possible, which was difficult seeing as though he had just realized he was in love with his best friend. He wanted to tell Dele everything, but he didn’t want to scare him. He knew they were together now, as a couple, but they had never talked about what that meant.   
He decided in that moment to push all of those complicated thoughts away to analyze later. He would just enjoy their vacation together, and when they were back home, then he would allow himself to think about everything else. For now, he would just sleep, holding the man he loved in his arms.


	10. About Time

The last day of their vacation came far too quickly. Both Eric and Dele were excited for the upcoming football season, but they had been enjoying the time together so much, they were sad to see it come to an end. They had had a relaxing day, going for a quick swim in the ocean in the morning, having two rounds of mind blowing sex in the afternoon, and eating a heavy meal full of foods that would soon be prohibited by their footballing diet. That night, they lay curled up together in their bed. Eric’s hands were lazily stroking Dele’s curls, which had quickly become one of his favorite things to do. They talked about random things for a while, before Eric finally decided he could not wait any longer. He was so afraid of what would happen to them after they got back to their normal lives, he had to talk to Dele.  
“Del?”  
“Yah?”  
“Do you think we’ll be okay, you know, once we get back home. I mean, we haven’t really talked about what we are... or where all of this is going.”  
“Well, what do you want this to be, where do you want this to go?” Dele asked  
“You won’t laugh at me?”  
“Promise I won’t”  
“I want us to be a couple. I want all of the cheesy stupid little couple things. I want to go to bed with you, and wake up next to you. I want to hold your hand, and stroke your hair. I want to be the one to make you laugh and to make you smile, and I want this to last, I don’t want us to be temporary.”  
“Consider it done.”  
“Just like that? I mean, you want all that too?”  
“Of course, I’m crazy about you Dier, and I don’t want this to end. I want all of the stupid coupley things too.”  
“Wow, well, that was easier than I thought.”  
“How could you think I would want anything different? We’ve been friends for years, and now we’re even more. Everything with you just seems so natural, you know. You and I, we just go together, like Fanta and Coke.”  
“Which one are you?” Eric teased  
“Shut up, I am clearly Fanta, because I’m more fun and outgoing. You’re coke, classic and lovable.”  
Eric grinned at that.  
“So, do we, like, tell people though?”  
“Do you want to? I will do whatever you are comfortable with” Eric asked  
“I wouldn’t mind. I’m not ashamed or anything like that.”  
“Neither am I. But, you are still so young, and you have such a big career ahead of you, It would kill me if I knew that I had done something to put that in jeopardy.”  
“But I don’t want to hide forever.”  
“Not forever, just for a little while. And its not hiding, its protecting ourselves. We can still tell family and friends though, and the boys at Tottenham, they would be supportive I’m sure.” Eric reasoned  
Dele agreed, and the matter was settled, for the time being. Eric still had a nervous knot in his stomach, knowing that it would be a hard road for the two of them, but also knowing that no matter what, they would get through it together. Fanta and Coke. Dele and Dier.

Being back at training was like coming home. Seeing all the boys for the first time since the world cup was great, and everybody was hugging and doing handshakes and laughing together. After the first session, Dele and Eric sat down for lunch at a table with Son, Vertonghen, and Dembele. They were chatting about their vacations, and Jan casually asked Eric how his went.   
“It was the best vacation I’ve ever had.” Eric answered honestly. Dele giggled and leaned over to give Eric a kiss on the cheek without thinking. Then they froze and they both turned to the other lads at the table nervously.  
“So..um...we are kind of dating now.” Dele said, his voice slightly unsure.  
There was a minute where everything was quiet, and it felt like the longest minute of Eric’s life. Then Son smiled his trademark smile, and exclaimed:  
“Its about fucking time!”  
The whole table erupted in laughter, and relief flooded through Eric.  
“So you guys are really okay with this?” he asked  
“First of all, you guys don’t need our approval. You should date whoever you want.” Jan replied calmly. “And second of all, we are so happy for you. This has been a long time coming, and we’ve all been hoping you guys would get together finally.”  
Eric smiled at Jan’s words. He turned to Dele and they both shared a look of relief and joy. This was a good start, Eric thought to himself. He took Dele’s hand in his, and laced their fingers together, happy that he was free to do so in front of this friends.


	11. Pillows and Puppies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a short fluffy chapter!

Eric and Dele lounged on the couch after a particularly rough training session. The TV was flickering in front of them, playing some reruns of a sitcom, but Eric wasn’t really paying any attention. He was focused more on his boyfriend, a word that every time he said it out loud or in his head, made his stomach flutter with happiness. Dele was sprawled out on the couch, his head resting in Eric’s lap, staring up at him with those puppy dog eyes. Eric traced Dele’s features admiringly, making the younger man smile.  
“You are so damn beautiful Delboy” He whispered  
Dele stretched upward to plant a quick kiss on Eric’s lips.  
Eric had to hold himself back from saying 'I Love You' right then and there. He knew he had to wait for the right time, he didn’t want to overwhelm Dele with too much too fast. It was just so difficult to keep those feelings inside. It took all of his strength to keep the words inside.  
“You know, if I wasn’t so sore from training, I’d rip your clothes off and take you right here on this couch.” Eric said instead.  
Dele laughed his adorable laugh.  
“My boyfriend is an old man! Can’t even handle a simple training session!”  
Eric’s heart skipped a beat at the word boyfriend coming out of Dele’s mouth.  
“That’s not fair, you know you’re exhausted too!” Eric retorted  
Dele wouldn’t stop laughing, so Eric took a pillow from the side of the couch and whacked him in the face with it.  
“Hey!” Dele leapt up from the couch, grabbing his own pillow, and got in a few shots of his own. Of course, both of them being so competitive, this led to an all out pillow fight. By the end, they were exhausted, laying on the floor, tangled together and breathlessly laughing. After a while, Eric’s dogs bounded over and snuggled up next to the two of them.  
“We should get up and go to bed.” Eric suggested. Dele’s breath was beginning to even out, and Eric suspected he was close to sleep.  
“Nah, let's just stay here, you’re so comfortable.” Dele mumbled in replied, snuggling closer to Eric, and giving a contented sigh.  
Eric couldn’t argue with that,he wasn’t too keen on moving either. So, he reached a hand up and pulled a blanket down off the couch, draping it over the two of them cozily. Soon, they fell asleep on his living room floor, happy and exhausted.


	12. Week One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm so happy Dele scored!

Standing in the tunnel, Eric felt all the familiar nervous flutters in his stomach. He looked toward the back of the line, and his eyes found Dele. His boyfriend gave him a bright, confident smile, and Eric felt himself instantly relax. They could do this, this could finally be their year. And with that thought, he went out onto the pitch.  
The game started out well, Jan scored in the first 10 minutes, and Eric couldn’t be happier for his friend. But, when Dele headed in a beautiful goal a short time later, Eric felt like his heart would burst with love and with pride. He bounded over to Dele, and wrapped him up in a hug.  
“You are brilliant” He whispered in Dele’s ear, before running back to take his position, leaving Dele with a proud smile on his face.   
When the final whistle blew, and Spurs had won, Eric felt relieved, and exhausted. The first match of the season was always a rough one, especially coming off international duty.   
Everyone was in a good mood, and the locker room was filled with banter. Eric saw Dele across the room, joking and laughing with a few of the lads, and he felt content just watching the man he loved be so happy. Dele caught his gaze, and gave him a wink, and just the simple gesture made Eric blush. He quickly showered and dressed, before taking his place on the plane beside his boyfriend. During the flight, the lights were turned down, and Eric nestled his head on Dele’s shoulder. Before he knew it, he was sound asleep. 

“Wake up sleepy head. We’re home.” Dele whispered, giving Eric a gentle nudge. Eric woke with a start, feeling disoriented for a minute, as he always did after a nap.  
He took the hand Dele offered him, and rose to his feet, still feeling a bit groggy. He followed Dele to his car, since they had driven there together, and flopped down into the passenger’s seat.  
As they drove off, Dele casually rested his hand on Eric’s thigh, out of habit. They sat there in comfortable silence the whole way home.   
“You want to stay over?” Dele asked, even though he knew the answer already. They hadn’t spent a single night apart since they had gotten together. It just felt more natural, more comfortable, to fall asleep cuddled together, and to wake up the same way.   
“Sure.” Eric replied, hauling his bag out of the car, and following Dele inside. As soon as they stepped in the entryway, and the door shut behind them, Eric threw his arms around Dele, and gave him a deep, lingering kiss. He had been fighting the urge to kiss his boyfriend ever since he’d scored that match winning goal. Now, in the privacy of Dele’s front hallway, he was free to attack his boyfriend’s mouth in a way that conveyed all of his pride, and all of his joy.  
“You were fucking amazing today, first game of the season and you’re already winning games for us.” Eric said in between kisses. Dele wrapped his arms around Eric’s waist and pulled their bodies even closer together. Eric felt a jolt of electricity as their groins met through the fabric of their pants.   
“I deserve a reward then, don’t you think?” Dele grinned mischievously.  
“Anything you want Delboy” Eric replied  
“Suck my dick Dier.” Dele commanded, his words making Eric feel dizzy with lust as all of his blood flowed below his waist.   
Eric immediately sunk to his knees, and dragged Dele’s pants down his thighs. He gently kissed and licked the sensitive area, before taking him in his mouth slowly.   
“Fuck!” Dele gasped, his fingers running over Eric’s shaved head, finding nothing to grip.  
“You really need to grow your hair out.” He observed.  
Eric nearly choked at that comment. He pulled off and smiled up at Dele.  
“I will consider it.” He said, before diving back in for more. He wrapped his large hand around the base of Dele’s cock, then took the rest in his mouth until his lips met his fist. He sucked and licked, and reduced the younger man to a moaning, panting mess. Dele came violently, his voice echoing in the quite, empty hallway. Eric swallowed every last drop before getting back to his feet, and capturing Dele’s soft lips in a hot and heavy kiss. Dele slotted his leg in between Eric’s and soon Eric began to rub himself off against Dele’s thigh. He came in his pants in a matter of minutes, and they both slumped down to the floor, utterly exhausted.   
“That was amazing” Dele said breathlessly  
“Just wait until tomorrow morning when we’re both well rested, then I will give you a real goal celebration.” Eric replied with a smirk.  
“What did I ever do to deserve you?” Dele sighed happily and Eric’s heart felt like it would explode with fondness.  
“Hey, let’s go to bed.” He suggested, taking Dele’s hand in his, and walking with him to the bedroom. They collapsed together on the bed, and were asleep almost immediately. The last thing Eric thought before succumbing to sleep, was just how lucky they both were to have found each other.


	13. I Want To Hold Your Hand

The next morning, Eric woke up to the sound of pots and pans crashing to the floor, followed by somebody cursing loudly in the kitchen. He rolled out of bed, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, and found Dele on the kitchen floor, scrambling to pick up the fallen items. He looked up and frowned when Eric walked in.  
“Shit! I was going to surprise you with breakfast in bed.” Dele said, rising to his feet.  
“Aw, my boyfriend is so romantic!” Eric grinned, giving Dele a kiss on the cheek.  
“Your boyfriend also can’t cook.” Dele whined, looking around dejectedly at the mess in the kitchen.   
“That doesn’t matter to me, Del, it was still a really nice thought. Now, how about I help you clean up, and then I can teach you how to make my world famous waffles. Deal?”  
“Deal.” Dele replied, his face lighting up in relief.  
They spent the whole morning in the kitchen, laughing and talking while they worked on their breakfast. Dele tried copying Eric’s actions, but kept getting lost. Eric never lost patience though, and soon enough, they had two pretty near perfect batches of waffles. They ate at the kitchen counter, feeding each other bites of food like a couple of sappy romantics. They were covered in flour, their cheeks hurt from smiling, and Eric could hardly remember a time when he had so much fun.

After their stomachs were full, and the kitchen was cleaned, the pair sat down on the couch, snuggled together under a blanket. They made out lazily for a while, then settled down to watch some Netflix. They didn’t have anything to do besides for a light training in the evening, so they decided to take advantage of the opportunity to do nothing for a change. Eric’s phone buzzed after a while, and he read the message, smiling as he did so.  
“Who’s that?” Dele asked sleepily, having just woken from dozing on Eric’s shoulder  
“Its Jan, the kids are with the grandparents tonight, and he was wondering if you and I want to go on a double date tonight after training.”  
“Really? What should we say? Do you want to?”  
“I mean, I’d be okay with it, but I don’t want you to do it if you think it would make you feel weird.”  
“I...I think it would be fun. Let's do it.”  
“You’re sure?”  
“Its just Jan and Sophie. Besides, if we hate it, we never have to do it again.”  
“Plus I get a chance to show off my beautiful boyfriend.” Eric grinned  
“You’re such a dork.” He giggled, but Eric could spot a slight blush on his cheeks. 

After their light training session, Eric and Dele hurried to their homes to get ready. Eric was going to get dressed then pick up Dele at his house in an hour. Of course, when he got there, dressed in a pair of khakis and a blue dress shirt, Dele was still agonizing over his outfit.   
“We’re going to be late.” Eric pointed out, sitting on the edge of Dele’s bed watching him go through ever pair of clothes in his closet at least twice.  
“Some of us like to put some effort into how we look. You should try it sometime.” Dele smirked.  
“You’re such an asshole.” Eric retorted, but his words came out more affectionate than anything. He didn’t mind Dele’s teasing. Besides, he could give as good as he got. It was just how they had always been with each other, and it worked.   
“There! How do I look?” Dele asked, emerging from his closet in a pair of dark jeans, a white dress shirt, and a designer jacket.   
“Took you an hour to come up with that?”  
“Shut up. I look stunning. Admit it.”  
“Fine, you look stunning. Can we go now? I’m starving.”  
“Not until you say it like you mean it.” Dele replied, crossing his arms like a stubborn child.   
“Dele, baby, you look absolutely fucking amazing. I can hardly keep myself from tearing off those clothes and taking you right here and now. Better?”  
“That will do. But I’m going to hold you to that ‘tearing my clothes off’ thing later on tonight.” Dele replied cheekily. 

They drove to the restaurant using the directions Jan gave them. It was a pretty fancy place, but Jan had said he’d chosen it because they were very discreet. None of them wanted to draw any extra attention when they were just trying to have a quiet night out.  
They greeted Jan and his wife, and were escorted to a nice, secluded table. There was some slight awkwardness at first. They all just stared at each other until Jan’s wife broke the silence.  
“For goodness sakes, we’ve all been out together before, we know how to do this!” Sophie exclaimed, smiling brightly. They all laughed, and it felt like the tension finally lifted.   
They easily fell into conversation afterwards.   
“So, when did you two get together, officially?” Sophie asked after a while.   
“Well, it kinda started in Russia, but then we took a vacation together afterward, and well, it just sort of happened naturally I guess.” Dele replied, a faint smile appeared on his face as he recalled it. Eric reached for Dele’s hand on the table, and gave it a reassuring squeeze.   
“That’s so great! I hope you know, Jan and I couldn’t be happier for you.” Sophie smiled at them both in turn. Eric felt relieved that everything was going so well with Jan and his wife. It felt good to be hanging out with another couple, being able to just be who he was without hiding. He didn't realize he was still holding Dele’s hand, until they had to break part to eat. They smiled warmly at each other, then started on their meals.

After dinner, the four of them walked around a bit, chatting comfortably. Eric felt a slight pang of jealousy when he noticed Jan and Sophie holding hands casually as they walked. He would give anything just to be able to reach out and take Dele’s hand in his, like they had in the restaurant. But this was different, this was out on the street, where anybody could pass by and see them. So, he restrained himself, reminding himself that he was doing it for Dele. The last thing he wanted was to do something that would compromise Dele’s career. Just then, Dele gave his shoulder a little nudge.  
“What are you thinking about Dier?”  
“How much I wish I could hold your hand right now.” Eric replied honestly.  
“Then do it.”  
“You know we can’t risk that.”  
“Yah, I know. So, how about when we go back home, you ‘hold my hand’ so fucking hard I forget who I am.”  
“Deal.” Eric giggled in reply, drawing the attention of the other couple, who were now quite a ways ahead of them.  
“Hey, lovebirds!” Jan called “Try to keep up!”  
They laughed and quickened their pace, their fingertips brushing together secretively. 

After saying goodnight to Jan and Sophie, they went back to Dele’s place. As soon as the door slammed shut behind them, they pounced on one another. They shed their clothing on the way to the bedroom, and acted out all the impulses they had had to hold back during their double date. 

Afterwards, they lay tangled together, panting and sweaty, but completely satisfied.   
“I think it went really well tonight, don’t you?” Dele said after a while.  
“Yah, we should do it again some time.”  
“I think so too. I..I really like doing couple stuff with you. It feels...right. To be with you just feels right.” Dele buried his head in Eric’s shoulder sheepishly after he spoke.  
“I feel the exact same way.” Eric whispered, stroking his fingers up and down Dele’s back soothingly. He felt like everything was falling into place. He felt like his life had been a puzzle before, missing one final piece, and that piece was Dele.


	14. I Love You

The victory at Old Trafford had the whole team buzzing. It was a stunning win. A win that would show all the doubters that Tottenham were trophy contenders. Hugs and handshakes were exchanged among the team, and the atmosphere in the locker room was electric. Eric could not stop smiling, and when he glanced over at Dele, he saw his boyfriend was wearing an identical grin. Three goals and a clean sheet away at Manchester United was something to celebrate. So, a couple of the boys suggested going to a club when they got back to London. Eric wasn’t too fond of clubs, but everybody was going, and he could see that Dele was excited by the idea, so he tagged along. 

The flashing lights, loud music, and wild dancing wasn’t normally something Eric enjoyed, but he glanced over at Dele periodically, and he looked like he was enjoying himself, which was enough for Eric to want to stay. He drank a few beers, and was feeling slightly buzzed when Dele finally made his way over to him.   
“Come dance with me baby.” He whispered, leaning in closely until his lips were brushing against Eric’s ear. It must have been the alcohol that made him so bold in public. He looked gorgeous in ripped jeans and a plain white T-shirt, and Eric had to use all of his power not to make out with him right there in front of everybody.   
“You know I don’t dance.” Eric replied, slipping a hand on Dele’s waist. He knew it was dangerous, but they could always blame their touchiness on being slightly drunk.   
“Come on, just try it. Pleeaase.” Dele said, while pouting his lips and giving Eric the puppy dog eyes. Of course Eric couldn’t resist, so he danced clumsily for a while, shooting Dele looks every time he laughed at his moves.   
“Okay, I’ve embarrassed myself enough for one night. I’m going to sit down.” Eric stated, making his way over to the lounge area. Dele said he could use a break too, and followed him off the dancefloor.   
Later in the night, Eric left to go to the bathroom. There was a long line, so it took him a while. When he finally got back, he saw something that made his heart stop. His Dele, sitting with a very attractive woman. Well, ‘sitting with’ didn’t quite describe it. She was sitting practically in his lap, obviously flirting with him as she giggled and petted his hair and leaned in closely to whisper things to him. Eric just stared at the two of them for a minute, before Dele noticed his presence. His eyes went wide, and he scrambled to his feet, almost causing the young woman to fall to the floor. By the time he’d made it through the crowd of people, and outside the club, Eric was already gone. 

Eric felt the sting of tears in his eyes as he made his way toward home. He’d walked around for a while, before calling a cab. The cab driver thankfully didn’t recognize him, so he was left undisturbed. Back at home, his dogs greeted him enthusiastically. He took them upstairs with him and let them snuggle up with him in his bed while he cried himself to sleep. It was the first night since they’d gotten together that he and Dele had slept apart. It was the worst night’s sleep he’d ever gotten. The next morning, he woke up feeling like shit. He took a shower and brushed his teeth, almost bursting into tears a few times at the sight of Dele’s hair products in his shower, and his toothbrush on his counter. He was making himself a pot of coffee when the doorbell rang. He opened the door, dressed in his hoodie and sweatpants, to find Dele standing there in front of him.  
“What do you want Dele?” Eric asked, sadness, exhaustion and anger fighting for spots in his brain. Dele stared down at his Adidas sneakers, and sighed.  
“Can I come in? Can we talk?”  
Eric wordlessly stepped aside to let the man in.  
“I’m sorry about last night Eric. It wasn’t what you think. She just came over and sat down next to me and started talking. I didn’t want to hurt her feelings or anything by pushing her away, I just didn’t know how to get her to leave me alone without seeming rude. She seemed really intent on talking to me.”  
“She seemed really intent on getting in your pants.” Eric spat back.  
“Don’t you trust me at all Dier? That would never happen. I’m with you, and your pants are the only pants I want to get into.”   
“Its just, I’m scared Dele. You were into women before we got together. Maybe I’m just a phase for you, an experiment. Maybe you’ll wake up one day and realize this isn’t what you want, that you miss breasts and soft skin and long hair. How do I know that wont happen?  
“You just need to trust me Eric. I want to be with you, it’s not a phase, I promise you. I was never really in to women before, I just didn’t think there were other options for me. I never really felt anything until I met you. Being with you just felt right, like it was what I was waiting for my whole life. The sex with you is better than any I have ever had. And besides that, I just love spending time with you.My feelings for you are real, and they aren’t just temporary. I...I love you Eric Dier. And I want this between us to last, because you mean the world to me.”  
Eric froze, his whole body was in a state of shock. He wondered if he had heard wrong.  
“You love me?”  
“Of course I love you Eric. How could I not?” Eric felt his whole body relax. Everything suddenly fell into place. He stepped forward and threw his arms around his boyfriend.  
“I love you too Dele Alli. I love you so much, and I’ve been waiting for the right time to say it. I didn’t want to scare you off or anything.”  
Dele replied by leaning in and giving Eric a deep, passionate kiss. Eric ran his hands up under Dele’s shirt, wanting to take in every inch of the man he loved and who he now kenw loved him back. Dele sighed blissfully, before pulling away.  
“I’m so sorry about last night.” He whispered.   
“It’s okay Del, we’re okay now, I promise.”  
“Take me to bed.” Dele replied, and in a split second, Eric slip his hands down to Dele’s butt, and hoisted him up. Dele wrapped his legs around Eric’s waist, and clung to Eric while he carried him upstairs. Dele giggled when Eric flung him down on the bed, and crawled on top of him, kissing him wildly.   
“You are so beautiful Del. I love you so fucking much.” He moaned as he ground his hips down over Dele’s groin.   
“I love you to. Now get inside me now before I burst.” Dele pleaded. Eric stripped them both of their clothing in record time, and grabbed a condom and lube from the nightstand. He ate Dele out for a good 15 minutes, opening him up with his tongue as Dele was reduced to a gasping, groaning mess above him. When he finally pushed his dick inside, the sensation overwhelmed him. Spending even one night away from Dele made him miss the feel of his skin, smooth and warm, the sound of his voice, deep and masculine, the strength of his thighs as they wrapped around Eric, drawing him in deeper. Every little thing about Dele drove him crazy with love and longing.   
Eric wrapped his hand around Dele and jerked him off as he pounded into him. Dele came so hard, his eyes rolled to the back of his head, and he let out a scream that Eric was sure could be heard by the whole neighborhood. Then, Eric pulled out, ripped off the condom, and began jerking himself over Dele’s exhausted body. Dele just lay there, propped up on a pillow, watching with wide eyes as Eric pleasured himself. He came with a desperate cry, his cum landing and mixing with Dele’s. Eric licked the mixture of their cum off of Dele’s stomach, while Dele looked on eagerly. Then Eric crawled up Dele’s body and they made out so they could share the taste of each other. When they were finished, they lay side by side trying to catch their breath.  
“Holy shit, that was so hot.” Dele exclaimed, making Eric grin. They moved around on the bed until they were laying in their most comfortable position; Eric’s chest to Dele’s back, with Eric’s arms wrapped around his boyfriend, pulling him close.  
“I love you Delboy.” He whispered in Dele’s ear.  
“I love you too.” Dele whispered back sleepily. They fell into a blissful post-coital nap, each of their hearts overflowing with love.


	15. More Than Anything in this World

The next few days were some of the happiest Eric had ever experienced. Being in love with Dele was amazing, but knowing that Dele loved him back, that feeling was indescribable. Every night they fell asleep, tangled together in the sheets, and every morning they’d shower together, eat breakfast at the kitchen counter, and then drive to training together. In the evenings, after long training sessions, Eric would fix them dinner, Dele would do the dishes, and they would curl up on the couch to watch Netflix. They had settled into a very comfortable routine 

“What do you want for dinner Delboy?” Eric called into the living room where Dele was playing fortnite on the couch.  
“Anything you want, love.” Dele called back, and Eric felt himself blush at that.  
As Eric shuffled around the kitchen preparing their meal, Dele wandered in.  
“Smells delicious, what are we having?”  
“Chicken with rice and veggies.”  
Dele smiled, and hopped up onto the counter, grabbing a carrot from a pile Eric had ready to chop, and munching on it happily.  
“Thanks for always doing the cooking, by the way.” Dele said, in between bites of carrot.  
“I enjoy it” Eric said, slipping a pan of chicken into the oven.  
“I know you do, but still, thank you.”  
Eric leaned over and gave Dele a quick kiss on the cheek, causing his boyfriend to giggle.

They ate dinner side by side at the table, talking and laughing like usual. After they both finished up eating, Dele shooed Eric away, insisting he could clean up. Eric sat down on the couch, and watched TV for a while, before getting bored.

Eric wandered into the kitchen and stood behind Dele, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend's waist.  
“You look so sexy washing those dishes, love.” Eric whispered in his ear  
“Really? This turns you on? Me in rubber gloves with a sponge in my hand?”  
“Mhm” Eric replied, gently rubbing his crotch against Dele’s ass.  
“You’re a weird one Dier.” Dele laughed as he scrubbed away at a pan.  
“But you love me despite that, dont you.”  
“No, I love you because of your weirdness Eric. You are unlike any other person I’ve ever met, and I love it.”  
“You are unlike anyone I’ve ever met too.”  
“And you love me?”  
“And I love you. More than anything in this world.”  
“More than football?”  
“Yes, of course.” Eric answered without hesitation. “I used to believe football was my whole life, my reason for living, until I met you Dele, and I realized that life can be so much more. You make me so happy, and I couldn’t live without you.”  
“I couldn’t live without you either Eric. And not just because I can’t cook for myself.” Dele let his tone turn joking at the last second, and Eric laughed. Only Dele could say something so heavy, but make him feel so light at the same time.  
“Let’s finish these dishes later, love. I want to take you up to bed, and show you how much I love you.” Eric said, spinning Dele around and pressing their lips together, wasting no time in slipping his tongue inside Dele’s mouth.  
Dele slid off his gloves, and took Eric’s hand, letting himself be led upstairs. They stripped off their clothes and Dele pushed Eric down on the bed, straddling his hips in a split second.  
“I want to ride you.” Dele stated simply, grinding his ass down against Eric’s groin.  
“Shit. Yah.” Eric stammered, reaching for the condoms on the bedside table.  
“No, I want you to fuck me without them.” Dele said seriously, gently knocking Eric’s hand away from the box.  
“Really? Are you sure?” Eric sat up, with Dele still nestled in his lap.  
“I’m sure. I’ve thought about it a lot recently, and I think we should do it. We’re both clean, we’ve had checks in the last month, and we are only sleeping with each other. Right?  
“Right. You’re the only one I ever want to be with Del. So yeah, let’s do it.”  
Dele didn’t have to be told twice, he quickly pushed Eric back against the pillows. He grabbed Eric’s hand, and slipped his fingers into his mouth. Dele worked his tongue around them, sucking them eagerly, before pulling them out and guiding them toward his hole. Eric began working him open with one finger, until Dele began to beg for more. He added a second, then a third, angling them just right and hitting his prostate dead on. Dele’s back arched, and he threw his head back, letting out a filthy moan. He looked absolutely stunning, his skin glistening, his eyes glazed over with lust.  
“Okay, shit, I’m ready.” Dele groaned, and Eric pulled his fingers out. He lubed up his dick generously and lined himself up with Dele’s hole. Then, Dele began lowering himself down, impaling himself on Eric’s rock hard dick.  
Dele rested his head in the crook of Eric’s neck, breathing in deeply as he adjusted to the sensation. Eric whispered soothing words in his ear, tenderly stroking Dele’s back.  
When he felt ready, he lifted himself up, then slammed back down, drawing a surprised gasp from both of the men. They soon built up a rhythm, with Eric thrusting up at the same moment Dele thrusted downward, doubling the pleasure. Eventually, Eric flipped them over, so Dele was on the bottom. He pulled out completely before thrusting back in, this time getting the angle perfect. He began hitting Dele’s prostate again and again as he pounded into him desperately. Dele had his arms and legs wrapped around Eric, holding on for dear life as he was fucked into the mattress. Every swear word he could think of escaped his mouth, as he felt himself getting closer to his orgasm. His dick kept brushing up against Eric’s abs, and it was driving them both absolutely crazy. When he finally came, Dele shouted so loudly Eric had to muffle the noise by kissing him hard on the lips. His orgasm seemed to keep going and going. He milked every drop of cum out of himself with his hand until it finally stopped flowing. Eric had slowed down during his boyfriend’s orgasm, but Dele soon reached around, and grabbed his butt, pulling him in closer to let him know he could move again. He resumed thrusting into Dele, the feeling of having nothing in between them was making him dizzy with excitement.  
“I’m going to cum” Eric panted into his ear.  
“I want it inside me, Dier. Do it.” Dele commanded, and that was all it took for him. Eric’s cum spurted inside him, filling him up to the brim. Eric had never come so hard or so much in his life, and it left him absolutely breathless. He ended up collapsing onto the bed beside Dele, trying to come back down to earth.  
“That was fucking unreal.” He panted, turning to face Dele. They were both wearing identical looks of satisfaction and exhaustion on their faces.  
“I know right! I’ve never felt anything like that in my life. Having you cum inside me like that, there are no words to describe how hot that was.” Dele replied, leaning in to give Eric a simple kiss on the lips.  
They lay there, blissed out for a while, before reluctantly rising to shower. Dele was so worn out, he just stood under the water as Eric cleaned him up. He made sure to be extra gentle as he washed out Dele’s hole, knowing how sensitive he must be. They changed into clean clothes, and snuggled up closely together.  
“You know, I didn’t think this was possible, but I think I love you even more after that.” Dele whispered.  
“I think I love you more and more every day, Delboy.”  
He watched Dele’s face light up in a delighted grin, and it was the most beautiful sight in the world to him.


	16. Loss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick chapter set after the game yesterday. It was tough to watch, but we will bounce back! :)

The loss to Watford was difficult to take. The whole team wandered into the locker room with saddened faces, and heavy hearts. They showered and dressed quickly and listened to speeches from their coach and their captain that did little to ease their disappointment.  
Eric drove he and Dele home, feeling worried when Dele spent the whole ride in silence. He pulled up in front of Dele’s house.  
“Do you want me to come in or...I don’t know, maybe you want to be alone?” Eric asked. He knew that Dele always took their losses harder than most, and it was always difficult trying to figure out if he should stay close, or give the man space.  
“Whatever you want.” Dele grumbled. They were the first words he’d spoken for hours. Dele got out of the car, slamming the door angrily, then stalked into his house, his shoulders tense and his face scrunched up in frustration. Eric didn’t want to leave him like that, so he followed him cautiously inside.   
He found Dele laying on the couch in the dark living room, staring up at the ceiling. He settled himself down on the floor by the couch, and the two of them sat in silence for a very long time.  
“It’s still so early in the season Del, we can bounce back from this. You played so well today, you really did. I’m so fucking proud of you, you know that. They were just too good today. We’ll get them next time around. ” Eric said after nearly a half hour.  
“Fucking Watford.” Was all Dele had to say. His anger seemed to be fading into tiredness, and he rolled on his side so he could face Eric.  
Eric gave him a kiss on the tip of his nose, and Dele gave him a tiny smile, which Eric took as a victory.   
They sat in silence for a while before Eric spoke again.  
“Are you disappointed in me? Because I got benched?” He asked sheepishly.  
Dele stared at him for a minute, confused.  
“Of course not. I mean, I think coach was an idiot for benching you, but I don’t blame you for it. It happens. It’s like losing this game; it hurts, but we move on from it. We do better next time.”  
“Okay” Eric sighed, brushing his fingers through Dele’s curls.  
“Hey, I could never be disappointed in you, Eric.I love you.” Dele said, his voice soft and reassuring.   
“I love you too.” Eric whispered back, feeling himself finally relax after a long and stressful day.


	17. International Break

Eric and Dele were spending a relaxing morning lounging around Eric’s house, cuddling with his dogs, listening to music, and making out on the couch. Dele was settled comfortably in Eric’s lap, kissing, and licking, and sucking at his neck determinedly.  
“You’re going to leave marks you know” Eric complained, though he could not deny that he was extremely turned on by Dele’s actions.  
“Well, I want everybody to see that you’re taken. By me.” Dele replied, sneaking his hand under Eric’s T-shirt, savoring the feel of his boyfriend’s warm, smooth skin.   
“Fair enough.” Eric said, secretly delighted at Dele’s statement. “But we should be packing you know.”  
“We have plenty of time.” Dele said, his voice deep and seductive. “Now let’s take this off shall we?”  
He lifted off Eric’s T-shirt then made quick work of his own. He trailed kisses down Eric’s chest, letting his tongue flick over his nipples playfully. Eric just threw his head back on the couch and sighed blissfully. Dele quickly slid Eric’s sweatpants down his thighs, and pulled his boyfriends dick out of his boxers. He grabbed ahold of the base, then slid his mouth down until it met his fist. Then, he just went for it, sucking his boyfriend off eagerly. He licked at the slit, and twisted his wrist at the same time, and soon Eric was coming violently down his throat. Eric sat there breathless and satisfied, staring down at Dele, who was nestled in between his legs.   
“God, you’re just so beautiful.” Eric whispered, stroking his cheek tenderly. “Come up here and let me take care of you.”   
Dele slid out of his pants and clambered up onto Eric’s lap. Eric made Dele suck his fingers, then brought them to his hole. He massaged the rim for while before sliding two inside. Dele held onto Eric’s shoulders and ground his hips down over the fingers, while Eric slid his free hand between their bodies and started to jerk Dele off. Their lips met in a heated kiss, as their bodies moved together seamlessly. Dele came with a loud grunt, and then gathered up the cum and fed it to Eric, who licked his fingers clean. They collapsed on the sofa, feeling unbelievably delighted.   
“How is it possible that every time with you just gets better and better?” Eric asked, wrapping his arms tightly around Dele.  
“I have no idea, but I’m not complaining.”  
“Me neither.”  
They lay there catching their breath and coming down from their high. Eric glanced over at the clock on the wall, and realized they had to start moving or they’d be late.  
They took a quick shower, and Dele helped him pack his bags. Then they drove over to Dele’s and packed up his stuff as well.   
“It’s going to be so hard, being so close to you during international break, but not being able to do anything with you.” Dele sighed  
“I know, but we’ll be busy during the day and at night we’ll be too exhausted anyway. And, just think about how amazing it will feel when we get back home. We can take a whole day and just stay home, kissing and fucking and doing all the stuff we can’t do this week. How does that sound?”  
“Sounds like heaven.” Dele replied, giving Eric a deep, lingering kiss before they walked out to the car.   
It was wonderful being back with the national team and seeing all the England boys. Eric and Dele walked in together and greeted everybody happily. After the initial team talk, they went up to the coach privately.  
“How can I help you boys?” Southgate asked in his usual pleasant manner.  
“Well, we kinda just wanted to let you know...Eric and I are dating now.” Dele stammered nervously  
“And we also want you to know that we will keep it 100% professional during the international break. We are completely focused on football.” Eric added  
“I appreciate you telling me. I know how committed you both are to the team, and I trust you when you say you’ll keep things professional.” The coach gave them each a pat on the shoulder and a kind smile. Eric felt completely relieved, and he and Dele started to walk away, a weight lifted from their shoulders.  
“Hey, wait you two. I have one more thing to say.” They turned back to their coach and waited expectantly.  
“I just want you to know I’m really happy that you two are together. I mean, it’s about time.” He grinned at them, before walking away.  
Dele and Eric just stared at each other, before bursting out laughing.  
“Well, that went better than I thought it would.” Dele exclaimed, throwing an arm around Eric’s shoulder.  
“Yah, I know!”   
“Now let’s go eat lunch, I’m starving!”   
“What else is new?” Eric chuckled, and earned himself a cheeky slap on the back of his head. So they walked into the dining room and settled down to eat lunch with Kyle Walker, John Stones, and Jordan Pickford, the five of them talking and laughing together comfortably. 

The next few days went well. They followed their strict training routine, and found themselves settle easily back into life with the international team. Eric and Dele were still joined at the hip, but that was just the way it had always been, even before they had started dating. Nobody paid them any extra attention, including the coach, who seemed to trust in them fully. 

Their first game approached, and they made their way over to Wembley. Eric and Dele settled into their usual spots on the bus, right beside each other.   
“Nervous?” Eric asked, noticing Dele squirming restlessly in his seat.   
“A little. I mean, it’s Spain, they’re a talented squad” Dele replied  
“Yah, but so are we. We can do this. You can do this, Del.” Eric threw a reassuring arm around Dele’s shoulders. Dele leaned in to the embrace and smiled, feeling infinitely better, all because of the man beside him. 

The game ended. They lost.  
“We got cheated! There was no fuckinig foul, the fucking ref had it all wrong!” Dele fumed as they marched into the locker room.  
“I know, love. It’s fucking nonsense. Bad calls happen all the time, and this time it happened to us.”  
“Still, it’s unfair.” Dele sighed  
Eric opened his arms, and Dele gratefully accepted the hug. He stayed in Eric’s strong, reassuring embrace until he felt the initial anger wearing off.   
They dressed and boarded the bus. When they got back they all ate their evening meal together, most of the boys talking and laughing in an attempt to forget the pain of the loss. By the end of the night, everyone was feeling a little bit better. Gareth had given them words of encouragement, and informed them that Luke Shaw was doing well, which lifted everyone’s spirits.   
Eric had just entered his room when his phone vibrated with a text message from his boyfriend.  
‘Come up to my room’ was all it said.  
‘You know we aren’t supposed to. It’s late.’  
‘Please, I just need you to hold me’ Dele replied, and Eric was out of his room, and knocking on Dele’s door in a flash. They laid together on the bed, Eric holding Dele tightly, and rubbing his back in a soothing rhythm.  
“Can you stay with me tonight?”   
“Of course, love.” Eric replied “I’ll just have to leave before anyone else gets up. I don’t want them thinking we can’t control ourselves, you know?”  
“I know. I think we’ve been really good.”   
“We have. And I’m going to reward you when we get home, I promise.” Eric whispered, making Dele giggle.  
They settled down into a peaceful sleep, cuddled together on the narrow bed. 

At five in the morning Eric woke up, and unsuccessfully tried to get out of the bed without waking his boyfriend.  
“You leaving?” Dele asked sleepily rubbing his eyes, and it was so cute Eric’s heart melted.  
“Yah, I’m sorry baby.”  
“Don’t be sorry. I’ll see you at breakfast. I love you Eric.”  
“I love you too Dele.” He whispered back, pulling the covers up over Dele’s body and tucking him in snuggly. Eric gave him a kiss on the head, and left the room. On the way down the hall, he bumped into John Stones, coming out of Jordan Pickford’s room.   
“I won’t tell if you won’t.” John said with a knowing smile.  
“Deal.” Eric said, smiling right back. He had started to suspect those two were a couple anyway, and he was honestly thrilled for them.

Eric and Dele ate a quick breakfast together, before heading out with the rest of the team for a light training session. Afterwards, when everyone had left to head to the pools for a swim, Eric cornered Dele in the empty locker room, and kissed him until they were both out of breath.  
“Wow, what happened to keeping things professional?” Dele laughed “Not that I’m complaining of course.”  
“I just really needed to kiss you. It’s all your fault for looking so damn hot all the time.”  
Dele grinned at him, and took his hand in his.  
“Come on Dier, you need to cool off in the pools.”  
“Have I ever told you how much I love you?” Eric asked  
“You may have mentioned it once or twice. But I hope you never stop saying it, because I love you too.”   
They smiled brightly at each other, and walked out of the locker room together hand in hand.


	18. Apart

Eric knew something was off. Dele was struggling in training, and he had a pained expression on his face. Eric watched his boyfriend closely all throughout the day, and during a break he finally confronted him.  
“What's wrong? Are you hurt Del?”  
“It's nothing, I'm fine. It's just a little twinge in my muscle.” Dele replied casually.  
“When did this start?”  
“After the match I guess.”   
“You have to see the physio, and tell Gareth.”  
“No. They’ll send me home. I don’t want to leave the team. I especially don’t want to leave you.”  
“I don’t want that either, but we have to make sure you’re healthy. Our club needs you too, and you want to be fit for the Liverpool match, don’t you?”  
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. I’ll go see the physio.” Dele replied, his shoulders slumped in defeat.  
Eric wrapped his arms around Dele and held him for a while.  
“It’s going to be okay, Delboy.” Eric whispered soothingly.

When Dele told him he was being sent home, Eric’s heart sank. Even though he knew they’d only be apart for a few days, it was going to feel so weird not having Dele to joke around with at trainings, or to sit next to at meals, or to hug right before they went out onto the pitch. He was so used to Dele always being near him. They had been close from the moment they met. They rarely spent a day apart, even before they’d started dating.   
“I’m so sorry Dele.” He said, immediately pulling the man he loved into his arms.   
“It’s not your fault. It happens. I just hate being injured, it makes me feel so helpless, you know?”  
“I know, love. But, you’re going to be fine in a few days, I know it. You just need to rest your muscles for a bit.”  
“I’m going to miss you. I know it's stupid, I mean, we’re only going to be apart a few days, but I will really miss you Eric.”  
“It’s not stupid. I feel it too. It’s not going to be the same without you here with me.”  
“I love you”  
“I love you too.”  
They lay down in Dele’s bed for a while, holding each other tight, and drifting in and out of sleep.  
Eric helped Dele pack his bag, and later that day, watched him as he rode out of the car park. When he got back to his room, he immediately texted Dele.  
‘Miss you already.’ He pressed send then laid down on his bed feeling the loneliness creeping in.

After the evening training session, Eric headed back to his room, not feeling like socializing during their down time. He grabbed a book from his backpack and settled down to read it, only to be disturbed a few minutes later by a knock on the door. He sighed, trudged over to the door and opened it to find John Stones and Jordan Pickford standing there.   
“Whats up?” Eric asked, surprised to see them.  
“We know you’re feeling down cuz Dele’s left, so we came to cheer you up!” Stonesy exclaimed, grinning wildly.  
“Thanks guys, that’s really nice, but I don’t really feel like being cheered up. I mean, how do you guys do it, being away from each other so much? I’ve only been away from Dele for a few hours and it hurts.”  
“We don’t live that far from each other, and we spend all of our free time together. I mean, it's hard, but we talk on the phone and facetime a lot. There are ways to get around it, you know.” Jordan replied.  
“Plus, after you’ve been apart for a while, the reunion sex is mindblowing.” Stonesy remarked, earning himself a slap on the back of the head by Pickford.   
Eric laughed, feeling himself finally relaxing a little after such a rough day.   
“Now, come play some FIFA with us Dier.” Jordan said, and Eric found himself saying yes.   
He was in the middle of their fifth game when his phone started ringing. He felt his heart beat faster when he saw Dele’s name on the screen. He handed his controller to John and went out into the hall.  
“Hi baby! I’m so glad you called! How are you doing?”  
“I’m okay. Just been resting all day, it’s pretty boring. How about you?”  
“Well, I miss you like crazy. Stonesy and Pickford came by my room though to cheer me up, so we’re playing some FIFA now.”  
“I miss you too! I’m glad those two are taking good care of you though.”  
“You know, I asked them how they handle being apart so much, and Stonesy said that they get to have amazing reunion sex.”  
Dele burst out laughing, and Eric was so happy to hear that sound.   
“Well, that kind of makes being apart not seem so bad.” Dele replied  
“I know, every time we start missing each other, let's just think of all the stuff we get to do when we’re together again.” Eric suggested.  
“Sounds good to me! Guess what I’m thinking of right now?” He said, his voice low and seductive.   
“What would that be?”  
“Me on the bed, on my hands and knees and you pounding into me and jerking me off with those big, strong hands of yours.”   
Eric gave a low moan  
“Stop it before you give me a boner.” he pleaded.  
“Fine, I will just have to jerk off thinking about it later.” Dele huffed  
“Or I can call you in a few minutes when I get back to my room, we can facetime, and jerk off together?”  
“Really?” Dele shrieked like an over excited child.  
“Yah, if you want to.”  
“Of course I do!”  
So, Eric hung up the phone, and went back inside.  
“Um, I’m going to go back to my room, Dele and I are going to... um… talk some more.”  
John and Jordan exchanged a knowing glance, like they saw right through Eric’s words.  
“Go on, have a good ‘talk’ then.” Stonesy giggled.  
“Seriously though, thanks for helping me. You guys are the best.”  
“We know.” Jordan replied, and he and Stones turned back to their FIFA match, wearing matching grins.

Eric and Dele jerked off together over facetime, and Eric found the whole thing extremely hot. Watching Dele pleasure himself, and hearing him moaning Eric’s name was indescribably sexy. Afterwards, they talked for a few hours until it was time for bed. Eric fell asleep feeling confident that he and Dele would get through the next few days just fine.


	19. Reunited

Eric didn’t even bother dropping his bags off at home; he was just so excited to see Dele. It had only been a couple of days, but it was the longest they’d spent away from each other in a long time. He knocked on the door to Dele’s house, but there was no answer. After a while, he texted Dele, saying he was in front of his house. He got a response a half a minute later.  
‘Really? I’m actually in front of your house right now! I wanted to surprise you!’   
Eric grinned as he read the message. He hopped back into his car, and when he pulled up in front of his house, sure enough, Dele was sitting on the front steps, smiling brightly at him.  
“Welcome home Dier!” He exclaimed, embracing Eric warmly. They stood there for a while, just hugging each other, trying to make up for lost time. Then, they finally made their way inside. As soon as they were safely in the house, Eric pressed Dele’s body up against the front door, and started kissing him hungrily. Dele groaned with pleasure, and shoved his tongue inside Eric’s mouth. They kissed until their lips were swollen and they were both out of breath.  
“God, I missed you Del.” Eric panted.  
“I missed you too. How about we go upstairs and I can show you just how much.” He teased, grabbing Eric's hand and pulling him into the bedroom.  
“Wait, what about your injury?” Eric asked worriedly.  
“It's fine.” Dele replied with a shrug, and sat on the edge of Eric’s bed.  
Eric studied his face carefully. He knew his boyfriend too well to believe that.  
“Del, come on, tell me the truth.”   
Dele sighed.  
“Still hurting. The physio said I’m most likely out of Saturday’s match.” He replied sadly  
“I’m really sorry love, that fucking sucks.” Eric sat down beside Dele on the bed, and threw his arm around him comfortingly. Dele rested his head on Eric’s shoulder.  
“Let’s just rest a while, okay love?” Eric whispered, and Dele nodded in agreement. They both showered and changed into comfy clothes before crawling under the covers. Eric wrapped his arms around his boyfriend, pulling him close, and Dele rested his head on Eric’s chest.  
“I can hear your heartbeat.” He whispered  
Eric pressed his lips to Dele’s hair, and squeezed him tightly  
“I love you.”  
“I love you too.” Dele replied, and they laid like that for the next few hours, happy just to be close to each other once again.


	20. Forever

The final whistle blew and Eric was feeling nothing but disappointment. They lost. Again. This time at Wembley. He went through the motions, congratulating the Liverpool players on a good game, giving his own teammates consolatory pats on the back, thanking the fans that hadn’t left yet, and then trudging toward the locker room. He showered and dressed quickly, wanting to get home as soon as possible. His disappointment was quickly becoming anger, at the result, and at himself. He knew what people were going to say about him, about the mistake that almost cost them a goal, about his whole career. People were always so eager to pounce on any weakness they could find in others. Sometimes, the cruelty people could exhibit shocked him to his core. Most of the time, he could ignore it. He knew that it was just part of being a professional footballer. He also knew that others, including Dele, got a lot of heat as well. He tried to shake it off, but he just couldn’t. He rode home with a toxic mixture of sadness and anger boiling in his veins. He opened the front door and was immediately greeted by the smell of his favorite take out, and the sight of Dele Alli, setting the table and humming a tune as he did so. Dele looked up, and gave him a big smile, and everything else in the world just melted away. The loss and all the bad feelings it was sprouting inside him all just seemed to vanish at the sight of the man he loved in front of him. He was wearing a pair of shorts, and one of Eric’s baggy T-shirts, and he looked absolutely stunning.  
“Welcome home babe!” Dele exclaimed, wrapping Eric up in a hug. Eric just melted into the embrace, feeling so relieved to have his boyfriend there with him at that moment.  
“It was a tough match, love and you did you’re best.” He whispered, rubbing Eric’s back soothingly, reassuring Eric that he was there for him, and he always would be.  
“I almost cost us a goal. I was shit, absolute shit out on that field.”  
“Shut up, you weren’t, and don’t you ever say that about my boyfriend again.” Dele shot back teasingly, drawing a hint of a smile from Eric.  
“It was just an off day, it’s going to get better. We will get better.” Dele insisted  
They stood like that for a while, until Dele remembered the food.  
“I got you your favorite! Lets eat before it gets cold!”  
So Eric dug into the peri-peri chicken Dele bought from Nando’s, savouring every single bite. Afterwards, Dele cleaned up, insisting that Eric relax. Then the two of them snuggled up on the couch, and turned on some sitcom rerun on TV.  
“This was perfect, thank you Del. I really needed this. You’re the best boyfriend anyone could ask for.”  
“Stop or it’ll go to my head.” Dele joked, giving him a jab in the ribs, but Eric could see out of the corner of his eye that Dele looked so proud of himself, and it warmed Eric’s heart. He wished everybody in the world could see Dele for who he was. Dele was the kind of man that bought him his favorite food after a long, hard day. Dele was the kind of man who liked to snuggle up together in bed. He was the kind of man who gave Eric shy smiles, and gentle kisses on the cheek, for no other reason but for the fact that he loved Eric. Dele was the funniest, kindest, gentlest man he had ever known, and he wanted to shout from the rooftops how much he adored him. So he told Dele all of this, because after such a draining day, the only thing that mattered was that Dele knew what he meant to Eric.  
Dele’s response was to stare at him with those big, innocent, puppy dog eyes, and give him the purest, most beautiful smile he had ever seen.  
“God, I love you so much Eric. Sometimes I just can’t believe how lucky I am that you came into my life. And I can’t imagine my life without you. Sometimes, when I’m going through my day, and I catch a glimpse of you, or even just think of you, I have to stop for a second and take a deep breath and convince myself that it’s all real, because it feels like a dream. The most wonderful dream I’ve ever had.”  
Eric felt like he had never been happier in his life. Even after the day he had had, he still felt like he was on top of the damn world.  
When they ran out of words, they instead showed each other how they felt. Dele crawled into Eric’s lap, and kissed him deeply and passionately. Eric put his arms around Dele’s waist, and lifted him up, carrying him to the bedroom without breaking the kiss. He lowered Dele down on the bed gently, and began taking off his clothes slowly.  
“I love when you wear my clothes.” He confessed, as he lifted his t-shirt from Dele’s body.  
“I like it because it smells like you.” Dele moaned as Eric trailed his lips down Dele’s muscular torso, taking his time to lick and suck at his nipples, and run his tongue along the ridges of his abs. He slowly slid off Dele’s shorts, and found that he wasn’t wearing any underwear.  
“Cheeky little bastard” Eric mumbled, and Dele’s laugh filled the room. Eric swirled his tongue around the head of Dele’s cock, before taking him in his mouth and sucking him eagerly.  
After a while, he pulled off and kissed a trail back up to Dele’s lips, attacking them as if it had been 10 years since they’d kissed, not 10 minutes.  
“I fingered myself before you came, to get ready.” Dele admitted, and Eric just groaned loudly, overcome by how hot his boyfriend sounded. Dele stared up at Eric’s face above him with a look of absolute bliss, as his boyfriend fucked him slowly and lovingly. Eric came harder than he ever remembered coming before. It took him a while to come down from it, and when he did, his first thought was to grab onto Dele, and hold on for dear life. They lay there tangled together, panting, sweaty, sticky with cum, and indescribably happy. Eric pressed a kiss into Dele’s hair, knowing in that moment that everything he needed in his life and everything he ever wanted, was right there in his arms.


	21. Our

Eric lay on the couch with his head in Dele’s lap. They had an hour before Eric had to leave to meet up with the team. Eric stared up at Dele’s face, taking in every little detail, and feeling as mesmerized by the man as the first time he saw him.  
“I can’t do this without you.” He whispered.  
Dele stroked his cheek tenderly, and looked down at him with a reassuring smile.  
“You can, and you will. I have nothing but confidence in you. You’re going to go out there, and you’re going to be amazing. I know it.”  
Eric let out a sigh of relief. He didn’t want to play their first Champions League game without Dele there with him, but he knew as long as Dele had faith in him, he could get through it. They stayed on the couch together until it was time for Eric to go. They embraced in the front hallway, and Dele planted kisses all over Eric’s face, making him giggle.  
“I’ll miss you so much.” Eric told him.  
“I’ll miss you too. I’ll be here watching and cheering for you. You’re going to win, I know it. Call me when you get there safe, okay?”  
“Okay. I love you.”  
“I love you too.” They kissed for a while longer, Eric pressing Dele up against the doorframe, and devouring his lips. They kissed until they were flushed and breathless, and Eric was running late. He had to rush to meet up with the team, getting there with less than a minute to spare. A few of the boys cast him amused looks when he rushed in with a red face and rumpled clothes.  
“Hey Dier, nice morning with your man?” Jan called over to him when he arrived, and the rest of the team burst out laughing.  
“Mind your own business Jan!” Eric called back good naturedly.  
He settled into his seat with a smile on his face.

 

This latest loss weighed heavily on Eric. They had been ahead, thanks to Christian’s goal. They should have held onto their lead. Eric knew he should have done better, and he silently berated himself for every little mistake he’d made. When they got back to the hotel, he stalked up to his room, and flopped down on the bed, feeling hot tears stinging his eyes. There was nobody around so he let them fall, not caring enough to hold them in. He hadn’t felt so low since their loss against Belgium at the World Cup. He felt like he’d let everybody down; his teammates, his manager, the fans, his family, and most of all, Dele. He knew Dele had had so much faith in him, and he felt like an absolute failure.  
His choking sobs began to die down after about an hour, and he was just about to curl up and go to sleep, when his phone rang. Dele was calling him. He wiped his eyes hastily, and answered.  
“Hey, love, how are you doing?” Dele greeted him softly.  
“Not too good. I fucked up so badly today. I let everybody down. I let you down Del, and you’re the one person I never ever want to disappoint.” Eric sniffed.  
“Eric, listen to me. You could never disappoint me, its impossible. I will always be proud of you, no matter what. And I will never stop believing in you, love.” Dele replied, his voice washing over Eric like a calming ocean wave. Eric’s tears began again, but this time they were tears of relief.  
“I must’ve done something right in my life to deserve someone as brilliant as you.” Eric cried.  
“Oh Eric, baby, please don’t cry. I wish I was there to hold you and kiss you and make everything feel alright again.”  
“I wish you were here too. But, just listening to your voice is helping me more than you could know.”  
“Do you want me to stay on the line until you fall asleep?”  
“Yes please.”  
So, Eric put his phone on speaker and placed it beside him on the bed. Dele told him all about his day. He talked about going over to Eric’s house and looking in on the dogs. He talked about having lunch with his mom. He talked about every little thing he could think of, his voice soft and soothing. Eric listened to every word, feeling his mind and his body finally relax.

When Eric finally got home, Dele was there waiting for him. He had Eric’s favorite movie queued up on Netflix, and a big bowl of popcorn on the coffee table.  
“I love coming home to you Delboy.” Eric remarked as they cuddled together on the couch.  
Dele gave him a peck on the cheek in reply, and pressed play on the movie. They were cozy under a big, warm blanket, and they were feeding each other bits of popcorn and giggling at how they had become silly romantics. Somewhere, in the middle of the movie, Eric suddenly pressed pause.  
“Do you want to move in together?” He blurted out.  
Dele turned to him, his mouth open in shock.  
“Are you serious Dier?” Dele asked.  
“Yes, I’m serious. I’m sorry I just sprung it on you, It just hit me all of a sudden, I want to live with you. I want to come home everyday to our home, the home we share. Do...do you want that too? Because if you don’t, it’s okay, I don’t want to rush you or anything. Shit. I freaked you out didn’t I?” Eric buried his face in his hands.  
“Hey, hey, look at me Eric.” Dele pried his hands away, and lifted Eric’s chin to look straight into his eyes. “You really want to live with me?” Dele asked  
“Of course. I love you Del.”  
“I love you too. And of course I want to live with you. I mean, we practically already live together, I’m always at your house, or you’re always at mine.” Dele replied.  
“So, we’re really doing this?” Eric exclaimed.  
“Yes, we really are.” Dele crawled onto Eric’s lap, and kissed him eagerly.  
“I love you so fucking much, Delboy.” Eric gasped  
“I love you too.”  
After about a half hour of making out on the couch in celebration of their decision, they finally settled back down to finish their movie.

The next couple of days were a lot brighter for Eric. Dele was back to full training, and ready for their next match, and they had started to pack up Eric’s house. They had decided it made more sense for Eric to move to Dele’s house, because Eric had the smaller house, and less stuff.  
“There’s no way all of your shit will fit into my house, Del.” Eric had stated, when they were discussing the details of their decision.  
“I’d like it if you didn’t refer to my prized possessions as ‘shit’ Dier.” Dele had shot back with an amused grin.  
“Fine, but you know I have a point. You have a lot of stuff, it would take years to move it all.”  
“Agreed.”  
So they had started the process the day after they had made their decision. They’d brought home a bunch of moving boxes after training, and were sorting through Eric’s rooms one by one.  
“The dogs are going to have to get used to a whole new house.” Eric thought aloud.  
“Yeah, but you’ve brought them over to my house before, so they’re at least a little familiar with the layout.” Dele pointed out.  
“True. Plus you live close to a really nice park, they’ll love that.”  
“Think about it, we can take long walks with them in the evenings, then come back to our home and you can fix us dinner, and I’ll do the dishes in our kitchen, and then we can shower in our shower, and have sex in our bed.”  
“Sounds perfect.” Eric replied, his heart melting a little bit every time Dele had said ‘our’. He had no words to describe how happy he was, so he just leaned in, took Dele’s face in his hands, and kissed him with everything he had.


	22. A shining moment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I haven't posted in a while, my life has been kinda crazy lately!

Eric felt his heart beating wildly in his chest as Dele stepped up to the spot. He was more nervous than if he had been taking that penalty himself. He wanted so badly for Dele to have his shining moment back at Milton Keynes. He knew Dele held a special place in his heart for this place, and it would mean everything to him to succeed back here in his home.  
As soon as the ball hit the net, Eric was up leaping for joy. He could not have been more proud of the man he loved. He took a minute to soak everything in, his life at the moment was better than he could ever have dreamed. Dele and he had just unpacked the last box, and were all settled into their home together. They had easily fallen into a comfortable routine, and the whole situation felt so right. And now, the man he lived with and loved with all his heart, was standing in front of him and grinning proudly from ear to ear. Eric enveloped him in a hug.  
“You did it...captain.” Eric whispered.  
“I did it.” Dele repeated, like he was trying to convince himself it was true.  
Their other teammates came over and took turns giving Dele hugs, and doing ridiculously elaborate handshakes. Eric beamed at his boyfriend as he watched him receive all the attention he deserved. Harry Winks came up beside him, and gave him a nudge.  
“It’s really sweet the way you look at Dele.” He whispered, covering his mouth with his hand.  
“How do I look at him?” Eric wondered  
“Like he’s the entire world.” Winksy replied simply, before jogging off.   
Eric smiled at what he’d just heard, because there was truth in it. Dele was his world.

By the time they got home, Eric was bursting with how badly he wanted to take Dele in his arms and cover him in kisses. He had to restrain himself at the match, and later on the bus he just gave him a quick peck on the lips, not wanting to draw too much attention to themselves by starting a full on make out session. But now that they were home, he could finally do all the wonderfully dirty things he couldn’t do in public.   
He kissed Dele in the front hallway, wrapping his arms around the younger man’s waist to pull him as close as possible. They began grinding against each other after a few minutes of heated kissing. Eric finally pulled away breathless and incredibly turned on.  
“What do you want Delboy? Anything at all, this is your night.”  
Dele smiled eagerly at his words, and threw his arms around Eric’s neck.  
“I want you to take me upstairs, get me on my hands and knees, eat me out, then fuck me until my mind explodes.” Dele whispered seductively in Eric’s ear.  
Eric’s breath hitched, and he needed a few seconds to recover from how hot his boyfriend sounded.  
“Consider it done.” He replied, grabbing Dele’s hand and pulling him in the direction of the bedroom. They stripped each other of their clothing as they went along the dark hallway, and landed on the bed completely naked. Dele crawled onto all fours on the bed, and just the sight of him with his ass in the air, ready and eager, almost drove Eric over the edge.   
“Fucking hell you’re so hot like this.” He gasped, pulling himself together just enough to climb into bed. He pressed his face to Dele’s ass, and began with long licks over his hole. Dele let out a string of swear words that eventually turned into a loud moan as Eric began to fuck him with his tongue.   
“Eric, I’m...ugh...I’m going to come.” He gasped desperately after a while. Eric pulled off, and allowed Dele a few minutes to calm down. He placed gentle kisses over his lower back and his ass cheeks, and whispered gentle, loving words against the skin.  
When Dele was ready again, Eric lined himself up, and pushed his dick deep into his boyfriend, feeling waves of pleasure as he was surrounded by tightness and warmth. He held onto Dele’s hips, and started to thrust into him.   
“Fuck, Dier, that’s so good...please don’t stop. Harder, Eric!” Dele moaned as he jerked himself in time with Eric’s thrusts. Eric began to nail Dele’s prostate again and again, each time with more force.   
“Shit, Dele, you feel so amazing!” Eric panted desperately, feeling his orgasm building.  
Before long, Dele gave a loud cry and was coming forcefully all over the bedsheets and his fist. Eric followed seconds later, filling Dele up with his come. He pulled out as gently as he could, and they collapsed onto the bed, tangled together in a sweaty, breathless heap. Dele looked at Eric with a blissed out expression on his face.  
“There are no words, Dier. You literally fucked me speechless.” Dele grinned.  
Eric leaned forward and captured Dele’s lips, and they exchanged soft, loving kisses for a while. They got up finally and showered together. Eric cleaned up every part of Dele, being extra careful around the most sensitive areas. Then they made out some more under the steaming hot spray of water, unable to resist each other.  
“I am so proud of you, Delboy. More than I can even say. You deserved this day, you deserved this win. It was amazing to watch you today. I love you so much.” Eric whispered when they finally lay down in bed, on fresh new sheets. Dele blushed and gave a shy smile.   
“I love you too.” He whispered back.  
Eric reached out and intertwined their fingers, giving his boyfriend’s hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze. He watched Dele fall asleep, in awe of his gentle features, and beautiful smile. Before long, Eric succumbed to his own exhaustion. They held hands the whole night.


	23. Goal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm so happy that Eric scored! :)

It all happened in a split second, the ball, landing perfectly in space, and his foot, connecting with it and sending it right into the goal. His first club goal in over a year, and he so wanted to feel Dele throw his arms around him in celebration. He knew Dele was at their house, watching on their TV, and cheering his heart out at that same moment. So he smiled brightly and accepted the congratulations of his teammates, before getting back to work. The game ended, and his goal had been the match winner. All in all, it was a successful day, but he couldn’t wait to get home. It had been tough with Dele’s injury, not being able to laugh and joke around with him at training and not being able to share the pitch with him on gameday. The hardest part though was seeing the man he loved in pain. Not just the pain in his hamstring, but the frustration Dele was feeling at not being able to do the one thing he loved doing most in the world: play football. Eric was always trying to cheer him up, cracking jokes, tickling his sides, and showing him funny youtube videos. Making the man smile and forget his problems for even a minute had been Eric’s main goal over the past couple of weeks.   
Eric unlocked the front door, and walked into the house he could still hardly believe was theirs. Not Dele’s, not Eric’s, but their’s together. He found Dele curled up in front of the TV, wearing a spurs jersey, and snoring like a freight train. Eric knew he had had a long morning of physical therapy, and he was more than happy to let the young man rest. He grabbed a blanket from the back of the couch and was tucking Dele in when he noticed something that made his heart skip a beat. The spurs jersey that Dele was wearing had Eric’s name on the back. He had been watching the game in Eric’s jersey, and that image alone was enough to drive Eric crazy with love. He pressed a kiss to Dele’s temple, and went to change into his comfy clothes. Eric was just heating up leftovers for dinner in the kitchen an hour later, when Dele shuffled in, sleepily rubbing his eyes.  
“I’m sorry I fell asleep. I watched the whole game, I swear, but then while I was waiting for you to come home, I guess I just dozed off.” Dele mumbled, coming over and tucking himself into Eric’s side and burying his face in the crook of Eric’s neck.  
Eric wrapped his arms around the younger man, and breathed in, letting the scent fill his lungs and make him smile.  
“I am so incredibly proud of you Eric. You know that right? You were brilliant out there today, and I loved watching you. I just wish I could have been there to celebrate that goal with you and the boys.”  
“I know, I wish you were there too, but I could feel you watching and cheering from our home. And you know, I scored that goal for you.”  
Dele sighed happily and nestled closer to Eric.  
“You know, you look so incredibly sexy, wearing my shirt, Delboy.” Eric whispered, making Dele giggle.  
“It was for good luck. And it worked, by the way. You know I was thinking, I’m really starting to feel like a footballer’s wife, wearing your jersey, waiting for you to come home after training and matches.”  
“Well, you would be the hottest of all the football wives, Del. Obviously. But, you’ll be back on the pitch soon, I promise. You’re working so hard to get back, and I know you’ll be as good as new in no time. I much rather having you out there on the pitch with me. It doesn’t feel right without you.” Eric rubbed soothing patterns over Dele’s back, and Dele pressed kisses into Eric’s neck and along his collarbone.  
“When I’m all healed up, I’m going to put this jersey back on, and you’re going to fuck me while I wear it. That will be our proper goal celebration, okay?”  
“That sounds more than okay.” Eric replied with a low moan, the image alone enough to turn him on.   
Dele giggled, and kissed Eric’s lips until they ran out of air, and were gasping into each other’s mouths. They sat down to dinner, and settled into their usual pattern of effortless conversation and lively banter. Dele kept the shirt on the whole night, and Eric felt like he would burst with how much love he felt for his boyfriend. Eric sat up in bed, tracing the letters of his name on Dele’s back, until Dele drifted off to sleep with a gentle smile on his face. Eric stayed up late that night, despite how tired he was, and just watched the man he loved sleeping peacefully beside him.


	24. Spain

National team call ups just weren’t the same without Dele, it was as simple as that. The win against Spain was brilliant, but he still felt like a piece of himself was missing because he didn’t have Dele by his side to celebrate. They texted and facetimed constantly, but it wasn’t quite the same. Eric was being teased constantly by his teammates for it.  
“You know Dier, you’re either talking with Dele, or you’re talking to us about Dele!” Trippier exclaimed at the dinner table after Eric had told an adorable story about the time Dele had fallen asleep on their couch mid sentence one time after a particularly exhausting training session.  
“I mean, come on Dier, we all love Dele, but we don’t need to hear about him every minute of every day.” Harry Winks added.   
“Hey, I always listen to your stories about your wives, and your girlfriends, and your children!” Eric protested, feeling like he was under attack all of a sudden. “Why is it so terrible if I talk about my boyfriend?” He demanded. Eric got up quickly from the table and stormed out of the room. He knew his mates didn’t mean anything by the comments, but it had been a long day, he was tired, and he was missing Dele more than ever. As soon as he got into the room, he kicked off his shoes and flopped down on the bed. The only thing he could think of that would make him feel better was to talk to Dele.  
“Hey Eric! I was just about to call you actually. You did amazing today!” Dele greeted him on facetime with a broad smile. Seeing his boyfriend, and hearing his voice put Eric immediately at ease.  
“Thank you, Del. You know, I just miss you so much.” Eric told Dele about what his teammates had been saying, and Dele listened attentively to every word.  
“I know they can be idiots sometimes, love, but they don’t mean any harm by it. You know that’s just how they are. And I for one think it’s sweet that you talk about me all the time.” Dele said with a grin.   
“Thanks Delboy.” Eric grinned back, feeling his muscles unclench and his body begin to relax. He leaned back against the pillows.  
“I wish I was there with you. I know exactly what I would do to make you feel better.” Dele smiled mischievously.   
“Oh really? And what would that be?” Eric smiled back, settling his body in the bed, readying himself for what was coming. They’d jerked off together over facetime two or three times in the past, and each time Eric was amazed at the power of Dele’s voice to make him come from thousands of miles away.   
“First I’d lay you down on the bed and kiss you all over, leaving marks so we can rub it in the faces of all the England boys. I’d kiss a trail down to your hips, then slide down your shorts. I would lick up and down your thick, hard cock, before taking you all the way into my mouth until I choke on you, because you’re so big baby. I’d let you fuck into my mouth, and you’d hold my hair so I can’t move. At the same time, I’d reach behind me and start fingering myself, so I’m nice and open for you.”  
Eric groaned and retrieved his achingly hard cock from his pants. Dele continued, his face slightly flushed as he spoke.  
“Right before you’re going to come, I’d pull off and climb over you until I’m sitting on your face, and I’d let you eat me out, because I know how much you like to do it, and it makes me feel so good, baby. Once I’m nice and open, and wet with your spit, I would get on all fours, and you’d pound into me, going nice and deep…”  
“Fuck, Dele, baby, I’m going to come.” Eric moaned as he sped up the movements of his hand.  
“Just imagine it Eric, slamming into my tight little hole, making me scream your name...I’m fingering myself right now, thinking of you.”  
With that, Eric gave a loud cry, and came all over his stomach and hand. He laid back on the bed, feeling absolutely spent.  
“Come on Del, let me see you come.” Eric pleaded.  
Eric watched as Dele jerked himself off frantically, and he nearly got hard again just from the sight of his boyfriend coming.   
They took a few minutes to catch their breath, both coming down from such a spectacular high.  
“You are absolutely fucking amazing Delboy.” Eric sighed as he settled down under the covers.   
“I know.” Dele replied with a cheeky grin.   
Eric was just starting to feel his eyelids grow heavier when there was a knock on the door.  
“Who’s that?” Dele asked, yawning.  
“I have no idea.”   
He walked over to open the door. A few of the England boys were standing there.  
“We just came to say sorry about earlier. We know it’s hard for you to be away from Dele, so you should be able to talk about him whenever you want.” Trippier said, and the others all nodded.  
“Thanks guys, I appreciate that. But, I know I was going a little overboard with the stories and everything.”  
“So we cool?” Harry Winks asked hopefully.  
“Of course!” Eric grinned  
“Why are you all sweaty, and why’s your face all flushed?” Harry Maguire asked all of a sudden.  
Then laughter could be heard over the phone line, and Eric realized he’d brought Dele with him to the door.   
“Is that Dele? Can I say hi?” Harry Winks asked excitedly.  
Eric turned the phone around and Dele greeted everybody with his famous wave.  
“So were you two…? Oh shit!” Trippier facepalmed, putting all the clues together. “Fuck, we’re cockblockers!” He groaned.  
“Its cool, we were finished anyway.” Dele said with a wink.  
The boys scattered after that anyway, not wanting to stick around in case there was a round two.   
Eric settled back onto the bed  
“We’re lucky to have friends like them.” Eric remarked, and Dele nodded in agreement. They spent the next hour just talking about everyday things, until Eric started getting tired.  
“Will you stay with me until I fall asleep?” He asked hopefully, giving his boyfriend a loving smile. “Of course I will, Eric.” Dele replied.  
“I love you.”   
“I love you too.”  
Eric put the phone down on his pillow, and fell asleep with Dele a thousand miles away, yet still right beside him.


	25. Dele

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a short chapter from Dele's point of view

Dele woke up feeling incredibly unlucky. He was injured, he was missing the champions league match, and Eric was gone away with the team. He went about his day feeling angry at everything and everyone. By the time the game rolled around, he was mentally and physically exhausted.  
He curled up on the couch under a big blanket, a bowl of popcorn on his lap, and the dogs at his feet. The game was just about to start, and Dele watched his teammates step out of the tunnel. When he spotted Eric, he felt his bad mood start to dissipate. He cheered loudly at the TV. He was wearing one of Eric’s jerseys; it had become his tradition during his injury. It was too big and baggy on his skinny frame, but he liked the feeling it gave him to wear Eric’s name on his back.   
Being injured was incredibly frustrating, but he found comfort in watching his boyfriend on TV. Even if he couldn’t be playing with Eric, the next best thing was to be able to watch Eric play. His commanding voice shouting directions to the midfield, his fierce gaze as he chased the ball, and his all round intensity on the pitch made Dele want to burst with pride. He remembered his early days at Tottenham, he was just a goofy teenager, wide eyed, and overwhelmed by all the attention he was getting. The pressure and the expectations weighed heavily on his shoulders, and he was struggling to bear it all. But, one day suddenly there was Eric. He felt an instant connection with the man. Eric was a calming presence; his easy going attitude, and his caring nature put Dele at ease whenever they were together. Somewhere along the way, they became friends, and then best friends, and then something more than friends, and now they were living together as boyfriends. Dele smiled to himself and shook his head in disbelief. He would have never guessed, when he layed eyes on Eric those years ago that they would end up together, but he couldn't be happier that it turned out the way it did. Everything just made sense with Eric around. Eric was his home.   
All throughout his childhood, and teenage years he listened to his mates go on and on about girls, and he had never understood why he never felt the same way. He decided early on to ignore any feelings he had, and focus on football. He kept his head down, worked harder than anybody else, and it payed off. Everything was falling into place for him, and yet he still couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something missing, that there had to be more to his life than football. He tried dating women, but it never gave him any kind of joy. He bought all sorts of expensive things, designer clothes, and fancy cars, but it still didn’t make him truly happy. Somewhere along the way, he realized that the only times he ever really felt happy off the pitch were the times when it was just he and Eric. Then the world cup happened, and they kissed. And Dele felt like everything was finally falling into place. It just felt right. There he was, making out with his best friend in a hotel room in Russia. He should have been freaking out, he should have been panicking, but instead, he felt relief, and an overwhelming sense of contentment. Every voice in his head was screaming ‘yes!’   
He realized that he had been waiting for that moment for his entire life.   
Dele smiled at the recollection, and turned his attention back to the final minutes of the game. It ended in a draw, and he knew Eric would be disappointed by that. So to cheer him up, he texted Eric a picture of himself and the dogs, saying:  
‘We are so proud of you, and we love you so much!’  
He knew it would take Eric a while to respond so he shuffled into the kitchen and fixed himself a salad.   
An hour later, Eric replied:  
“Awww, love you too! Can’t wait to be home with you again!”  
Dele pulled on one of Eric’s hoodies, and curled up on Eric’s side of the bed. He fell asleep feeling incredibly lucky.


	26. Welcome Back Dele

Eric was beaming as he watched Dele step out onto the pitch. He was finally back where he belonged. All those frustrating and draining physical therapy sessions had payed off, and he couldn’t have been happier for his boyfriend, or more proud of all his hard work.  
The game ended in disappointment for the team. They had held back the Man City offense, but the one early goal clinched it for the visiting team. Eric embraced Dele as he walked off the field.  
“Welcome back, baby.” He whispered, making Dele smile adorably.   
“Thanks. I wish we’d won though. Or at least scored, you know?”  
“I know, it’s not the result we wanted, but we worked hard, we were strong defensively, and there are some positive things we can take away from this game.”  
Dele gave him a lopsided grin.  
“What are you, my coach?”   
“Shut up.” Eric grinned, giving his boyfriend a friendly slap upside the head.   
They showered, and dressed, then said their goodbyes to the other boys.  
“You two coming out for drinks with us? We are going to drown our sorrows for a bit at that pub Trippier is always going on and on about.” Harry Winks asked  
Eric turned to Dele with a questioning look. He wasn’t keen on going out but if Dele wanted to, he would do it.  
“Not today Winksy, we’re just going to head home, have a quiet night in.” Dele replied, throwing his arm around Eric’s shoulders.  
“Fine. Go home and be an old married couple then.” Winksy teased.  
Dele flipped him off as he and Eric headed toward the door.   
They drove home in comfortable silence, listening to the gentle hum of the engine.  
“I’m really proud of you Del, you know that right? All the hard work you did to come back from your injury, plus signing your new contract. You have a really bright future ahead of you, and I’m so happy I get to be by your side through it all.” Eric said, as they pulled into their driveway.   
“I love you so much.” Dele replied, his eyes shiny with tears. He reached over and pulled Eric into a hug, nestling his face in the crook of Eric’s neck.   
“I love you too Delboy.” Eric whispered back. 

When they got in the house, they quickly stripped, and went to the bathroom. One of their favorite things to do after a rough day was to take a long hot bath together. Dele had a massive tub that fit the two of them fairly well. Eric sat with Dele between his legs, Dele’s back resting against his chest. Eric’s strong arms were wrapped around Dele’s body, and their wasn’t an inch of space between them. They talked for a while, or rather, Dele talked, and Eric listened. Eric felt his whole body relax as the warm water soothed his aching muscles, and he listened to Dele go on and on about some new Netflix series he heard about.   
“We should definitely start watching it together Eric, don’t you think?”  
Eric hummed in agreement, and pressed a gentle kiss to the top of Dele’s head.  
“Getting tired old man?” Dele asked teasingly  
“Yeah, a little.” Eric admitted, giving Dele a poke in the ribs for his old man comment. “We can’t all be filled with endless amounts of energy like you.”  
“To be honest, I’m knackered. Lets go to bed.” Dele replied, pulling the stopper to drain the tub.  
They toweled off, and Eric watched lovingly as Dele pulled on a pair of boxers, and one of Eric’s baggy T-shirts. Dele complained constantly about Eric’s fashion choices, but at the end of the day, he loved to snuggle up in Eric’s oversized clothes. It made Eric’s heart melt every single time. The couple curled up in their bed with the dogs at their feet. Eric was almost asleep, comfy and warm under the covers, when Dele spoke.  
“I’m hungry, Dier.” He whined.  
“Go get some food.” Eric yawned.  
“Or you could get it for me.”  
“I’m a tired old man, remember? Get it yourself.”   
“Pleeease.” Dele pleaded, giving Eric the puppy dog eyes, and smattering kisses all over his face.  
“Fine, you win.” Eric giggled, dragging himself out of bed, and down to the kitchen.  
He made two turkey sandwiches, and gathered up a bag of popcorn, and some grapes for himself. He returned with his hands full of food, and Dele clapped his hands excitedly, like a happy child.  
“Thank you Eric, you’re the best boyfriend in the world!”  
“Tell me something I don’t know.” He replied with a cheeky grin, before leaning in and kissing Dele on the lips.   
They settled down and ate their food in bed, occasionally feeding each other grapes and bits of popcorn, like a sappy romantic couple.  
“I love grapes!” Eric said with his mouth full, and juice dripping down his chin.  
“Sounds like it.” Dele replied, handing him a napkin with an amused look on his face. When they were finished, they snuggled back under the covers, and Dele rested his head on Eric’s chest. Eric put his arm around his boyfriend, and pulled him close, placing a kiss in Dele’s hair, and giving a contented sigh.  
“You make me so happy, Delboy.” He whispered after a while. Dele’s reply was a gentle snore, and Eric couldn’t help but laugh. He took a picture on his phone, and sent it to Dele, for him to see in the morning. The caption read: ‘Who’s the tired old man now?’ He let himself drift off into sleep with a satisfied grin on his face.


	27. Healing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Get Well Soon Eric Dier! 
> 
> Sorry it's been so long since my last update! I promise there will be another chapter soon!

Eric woke up with a pain in his stomach, which he promptly decided to ignore.They had training today, and it wasn’t like Eric to take a sick day just for a little pain. He wasn’t going to tell Dele either; his boyfriend tended to worry about things like this. He showered and dressed and found Dele downstairs munching on some toast. He pressed a kiss to Dele’s cheek, and sat down at the table.  
Dele looked up from the newspaper he was flipping through, and his face flashed with worry. “Whats wrong with you, love? You look terrible.”   
“Thanks a lot, Del.” Eric forced a chuckle.  
“I’m serious Eric. Are you sick?” Dele’s voice was so full of concern that Eric’s heart melted.   
“I’m fine, its just a stomach ache.” He assured his boyfriend  
“You should really stay home today.”  
“No. No way.” Eric protested, wincing as a pain shot through his abdomen.   
Dele rolled his eyes at Eric’s stubornnes

At practice, Eric gritted his teeth through the pain, and ignored the looks of concern Dele was throwing him. Even his other teammates noticed something was off. At lunch he sat down at the table in a cold sweat, fighting back the nasaeua. Dele begged Eric to go home, and when Eric refused, Dele just sighed and gave his hand a sympathetic squeeze. When they were running laps Eric felt another shooting pain, this one the worst yet. He doubled over in pain, and fell to his knees in the grass. Before he knew it he was heaving his guts out all over the pitch. The training staff rushed over, but Dele beat them to it. He was crouched down beside Eric, stroking his back, and whispering comforting words.   
The medical staff, with Dele’s help, got Eric to his feet and half dragged him into the clinic. Dele held Eric’s hand as the medical staff examined him. It was clear that the problem was Eric’s appendix.  
“He has to get to a hospital and get it removed as soon as possible.” The doctor told Dele, and he felt his heart stop.   
“You mean he needs surgery? Like real surgery?”  
“It’s a minor surgery.” The doctor explained gently.  
“Del, its going to be fine, love.” Eric assured him, stroking his cheek soothingly. Even in his painful state he was still able to comfort Dele, because that’s the kind of person he is.  
The manager let Dele go early so he could accompany Eric to the hospital. Eric was checked in and prepped for surgery. Dele barely let go of his hand the whole time, except when the doctors instructed him that it was necessary.   
Dele looked more nervous than Eric himself felt. Eric kept reassuring him that everything was going to be okay.  
“I need you to be okay Eric, I can’t lose you.”  
“Don’t be dramatic Delboy, its minor surgery, I’m going to just fine. You’re not getting rid of me that easily. I’m the only one that can put up with you, Del.”  
“You’re the only one that can fuck me properly too, Dier.” Dele whispered, though accidently loud enough to make the nurse on the other side of the room blush furiously.   
“You’re damn right. And when I’m better, I’m going to fuck you all night long, I’m going to make you feel so fucking good, delboy.” At this point, the nurse had scurried out of the room, and Dele felt his face flush with the beginnings of arousal.   
“Don’t turn me on like that here of all places.” Dele scolded.  
“Can’t help it if you’re easy.” Eric chuckled, pulling Dele in for a quick kiss. 

Despite Eric’s assurances, Dele still felt terrified as they wheeled Eric into surgery later that day. Dele paced the waiting room nervously, clutching a bouquet of flowers he had purchased at the gift shop for when Eric woke up. At one point, a few of his teammates, Jan, Sonny, and Harry Winks, showed up and sat with him for a while, which relaxed him a bit. They brought him a hot coffee, and a sandwich and forced him to sit still and eat.  
“Dier texted us before surgery, he said to keep you company, and make sure you eat and stay hydrated.” Jan explained. Dele felt his heart burst in his chest at how loving and caring his boyfriend was.  
“I love him so much. I need him to be okay.” Dele said, his voice shaky, and his eyes brimming with tears. Harry Winks pulled Dele into a hug, and ruffled his hair.  
“He’s going to be okay Del, promise. My mum had this surgery before, its a really simple procedure.”  
Dele was reassured for a while, until the lads had to leave, and he was left alone again. When the doctor came back out and announced Eric was out of surgery and was going to be okay, Dele felt overwhelmed with relief and joy.   
“Can...can I see him?” Dele stammered, his brain barely able to function he was so overwhelmed.  
“Of course, he’s not awake yet though, but he should be soon enough.” The doctor explained before leading Dele back into Eric’s room. Eric lay on the hospital bed, looking paler than his usual self. He looked tiny for some reason, despite being a 6 foot tall footballer, he looked tiny tucked in under the hospital sheets, in the stark hospital room. Dele approached the bed cautiously. The rise and fall of Eric’s chest reassured Dele, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Dele bent down, and placed a gentle, loving kiss on Eric’s head.  
He pulled a chair to Eric’s bedside, and sat down. He took Eric’s hand in his, and just sat there for a while, studying every single detail of Eric’s beautiful face. Eric looked very relaxed, his features were softened, and free of worry. Dele made a mental list of all the things he loved about this man; his blindingly bright smile, his clear, gorgeous eyes, his booming laughter, his slide tackle on Ramos, his penalty kick in the World Cup, and that look he would give only Dele, the one that made him feel like they were the only two people on Earth. His list was about a mile long by the time he was broken out of his thoughts by a low groan. Eric was slowly stirring from his unconscious state. Dele held his breath and watched as Eric’s eyes slowly flickered open.  
“Dele?” He murmured, his voice gravelly.  
“I’m here, love. You’re okay. The surgery went really well. You’re going to be just fine.” Dele cooed, his voice putting Eric immediately at ease.  
“I feel like shit.” Eric announced weakly  
“You look like shit.” Dele shot back, unable to resist their usual banter. Eric burst out laughing before his face contorted in pain.  
“Don’t make me laugh, it hurts.” Eric complained.  
Dele just ran his fingertips over Eric’s face.  
“I’m only joking you know, you always look gorgeous to me.” Dele whispered, pressing a kiss to Eric’s lips.  
“I love you so much, Delboy.”  
“I love you too, Dier. I.. um… brought you those.” Dele gestured to the bouquet of flowers on Eric’s bedside table, where he’d set them earlier.  
“They’re daisy’s, your favorite.” He added.  
“I love them, thank you, Del. I can’t believe you remembered my favorite flower.”  
“Of course I remember. That night during our summer vacation, we got really drunk, and you started babbling on and on about how you loved daisy’s and how if we ever had a daughter together, you’d want us to name her Daisy.”  
“Yeah, I remember. And I believe you said ‘put a baby in me, Dier.’ and we had, mind blowing sex on the hotel bed.”  
“Yeah, that was hot.” Dele admitted, remembering the night in vivid detail.  
“I think we’d make great dad’s some day, Del.” Eric said, giving Dele’s hand a squeeze.  
Dele smiled at this, and tucked it away in his mind to savour later.   
For now, he crawled into the hospital bed beside Eric, their bodies pressed together in the tight space. He pulled the covers up over their bodies and kissed Eric’s cheek.  
“Get some rest now, my love.” He whispered, and Eric smiled contentedly as he drifted back into a deep sleep.

The next day, Eric was discharged. Dele drove them home, and helped Eric into the house.  
“I’m not made of glass Delboy.” Eric chuckled, as Dele sat him down on the sofa, and surrounded him with pillows and blankets, and tucked him in securely.   
“You’re still sick Eric, and I’m going to take care of you no matter how much you protest.”  
Eric grumbled a little under his breath, though he was secretly pleased that Dele cared so much about his well being.

Eric was upset about missing the rest of 2018 thanks to his stupid appendix. But whenever he started feeling down about it, Dele would put on one of his favorite songs, or play his favorite movie, or tell him a funny story he heard, to take Eric’s mind off of it. Dele gave him constant kisses and cuddles, and fed him painkillers, spoon fulls of soup, and mugs of tea. Dele left him every morning with instructions to call if he so much as felt a sneeze coming on.  
“Any pain, big or small. Any discomfort, you call me.” Dele demanded, and Eric had to assure him about twenty times that he would.  
When Dele got back from training, he would tell Eric every detail about the day, he would ask Eric all sorts of questions about how he was feeling, and then he would fix them both dinner with his limited cooking skills he’d learned from Eric and they would snuggle on the couch and watch Christmas movies. Eric found himself enjoying his recovery, thanks to his boyfriend. Dele’s smiles, and his little caring gestures were the highlights of his days. He wasn’t sure how it was possible, but he felt like he was falling even more in love with Dele with every day that passed, until his heart was so full he thought it might burst, just like his appendix.


End file.
